


A Crinkle of Fate

by AFaith1192



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, F/M, Gen, HarryPotter Reimagined, MaraudersAU, Remadora, Ronks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-07
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-09-13 17:29:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 34
Words: 159,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16896918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AFaith1192/pseuds/AFaith1192
Summary: What if you were given a second chance? An oportunity to change everything...At the last minute before dying, Nymphadora Tonks makes a desperate wish; a wish to save more than one life. But changing the future will has a price, and she will have to learn how to pay it.





	1. PROLOGUE

**Author's Note:**

> NOTE: This is a sort of INVERSE-AU in which Tonks goes to Hogwarts along the Marauders.  
> It was a story I wrote when I was in highschool and I decided to reboot it. Hope you enjoy it.  
> Sometimes the characters, especially Tonks won't seem to match their ages, but believeme there's a plot reason for that.
> 
> DISCLAIMER :  
> All Canon characters are intellectual property of J. K ROWLING. I only own my own characters and the basic plot line of this work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I'll put the disclaimer here since I'll probably forget in the later chapters:  
> Harry Potter and its canon characters are wned by JK Rowling. I'm only a heartbroken fan who hopes to built up something nice to entertain fellow fans.   
> This applies for the rest of this story.

“Beyond the edge of the world there’s a space where emptiness and substance neatly overlap, where past and future form a continuous, endless loop. And, hovering about, there are signs no one has ever read, chords no one has ever heard.”  
― Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore

 

May 2nd, 1998

The screams and the fear filled the corridors of a place that she had once called home. Hogwarts was falling apart, innocents were dying, friends...family. Everyone was fighting to protect the people they loved at the cost of their own lives.  
Tonks ran through the castle dodging spells and curses. She waved her wand skillfully sending dead eaters crashing against the walls. She had managed to stay on her feet so far. She was a trained auror, but after her pregnancy and her recent childbirth, her body was still a little weak. Her muscles were starting to fail her and she knew her movements were becoming progressively slower and painful considering the injuries she kept gaining. Anyone would have stopped to take a breath, catch up a little rest, but not her. She chose to ignore the growing pain and the blood that was starting to stain her robes. She had to find him. He needed her. She had promised Remus that happened what happened, she’d never leave him alone; that she’d stay by his side...always; and that was a promise she would never break.  
She kept running as fast as she could. Aberforth had said Remus was on the tower dueling Dolohov. She knew her husband was skilled, but her heart had been giving her a bad feeling ever since she had stepped into Hogwarts and she wasn’t going to rest until she found him.  
When she finally reached the tower, her heart almost stopped at the horrifying image in front of her.  
Remus was laying on the ground, too weak or maybe too tired to keep himself up. Dolohov was a few steps away from him, his wand raised and a disgusting smile painted on his lips. Her instincts triggered and her reaction was automatic, she raised her wand and sent a stunning jinx at the Death Eater before he could even think of casting any spell at her husband.  
Tonks could be known as the clumsiest Auror, but when it came to fighting, nobody would ever question her skills. The jinx hit the man with clean accuracy; the force in it, sent him flying a few meters away from her fallen husband, and Tonks felt satisfied when she saw his body fall limply on the stone floor. Whether he was dead or just knocked out, she didn’t care.  
Remus had raised his head to see the person who had just saved his life. His face was scratched, dirty and bruised, but he was alive and that was enough.She made her way to him with quick steps. He saw her almost instantly, his face turning from confusion to relief,then to anger and finally to horror.

The hit got her right in her back, quick and clean. Tonks didn’t see the green light nor did she hear her aunt’s demented laugh; all she saw was the horror in her Remus’s face; his features growing blurrer and blurrer, until they simply disappeared in darkness.  
So this was death…  
She had expected something worse, maybe even painful; but all she could feel was a cold numbness the slowly enveloped her body in a deadly veil. It was as if she was floating in nothingness. Images of a thousand things crossed her mind, his first day at Hogwarts, the day she began auror training, Mad-Eye’s scolds, Kingsley’s friendly gestures, dinners at Number 12 Grimmauld Place, her parents….Remus’s smile as he held their son…  
Their son...their little Teddy. The grief began to fill her and, even though she didn’t regret joining the fight, she realized she wasn’t ready to die…  
She just didn’t want to die…


	2. It starts at beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Souls that are connected will meet in any time and any place

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm not native ENG speaker, so I apologise before hand for any grammar/spelling errors.

Some things are too strange and strong to be coincidences.”  
― Emery Allen

 

“Mum ...what if I can’t fit in?” a small girl asked her mother shyly as she watched a group of black robed children running around the platform 9 ¾ . She pulled down her hood trying to hide away her hair, which had turned ghostly white due to her anxiousness.  
Andromeda Tonks exchanged looks with her husband before both of them knelt down in front of their daughter and smiled sweetly at her child.  
“I know you’re anxious, Nymphadora….” Andromeda said brushing one of her silvery white locks away from her daughter’s face“I was scared on my first day, too.”  
“You were?”  
To Tonks, the idea of her mother being scared sounded so impossible and she looked at her father for confirmation.  
“Your mother was scared, I’m sure, Dora; but not as much as I was…” Ted smiled “but you’ll see. You’ll make lots of friends once you arrive. Just like I did...”  
“ Will I?”  
”Of course you will.You’re such a lovable, beautiful and sweet girl. Who wouldn’t?” Ted said pinching his daughter’s cheek affectiously.  
“Daaad….nooo….” Tonks giggled. Her parents’ words made her feel a little better, but she couldn’t help feeling nervous.  
She hadn’t had many friends in her 11 years of life. Her parents had been...reluctant about letting her interact with other wizards, so her list of magical friends was pretty short and reduced to a few of her own parents friends. She wasn’t allowed to play with muggle children either, since her parents weren’t sure that she wouldn’t morph by accident in front of them. As a result, Tonks had had a pretty boring uneventful childhood.  
“Well...that’s the departure bell, Dora.” Ted smiled warmly at his daughter.  
“I’ll miss you!”  
“We’ll miss you, too, honey…” Andromeda said hugging her daughter “write to us as soon as you can, alright.”  
“I will mum. See you!”  
Tonks smiled brightly at her parents as she entered the wagon and waved at her parents from the window as the train began to move.  
Alright Tonks...you can do this…  
Tonks took a deep breath and made sure none of her hairs were visible under her hood. The corridors of the train were full of students laughing and joking among themselves. For Tonks, who was already very clumsy, navigating through the tumult was extremely challenging and not many minutes passed before his foot stumbled over the something and making her fall unceremoniously to the ground.  
“Ah...bloody hell…” she cried rubbing her forehead “That’s the last thing I needed...curses.”  
“Are you alright?”  
Tonks raised her face just to find a hand outstretched in front of her. The hand belonged to a boy that was wearing black and crimson robes. He had light brown hair and green kind eyes; small scars could be seen in his pale face. Tonks took his hand and got up patting off her robes.  
“Thank you…” she said softly “I’m alright. I happen to have a very hard head. Comes in handy when you are as clumsy as I am...hehe…”  
Tonks pulled down her hood hoping that the boy hadn’t notice that her hair had turned bright magenta. The last thing she needed was to show out as a freak in front of a classmate .  
The boy smiled kindly at her. He seemed amused by her comment.  
“So I take you tend to trip a lot?”  
“Unfortunately…” Tonks shrugged “Not my best trait…”  
“I’m sure it isn’t that bad…”  
“You say that because you don’t know me…” Tonks sighed.  
The boy chuckled and Tonks couldn’t help but think that he seemed really nice. He gave out an air of kindness that made her feel comfortoble.  
“I guess that can be fixed. I’m Remus Lupin…”  
“Ny...Tonks. Just call me Tonks.”  
“Tonks? No, first name?”  
“I’m not too fond of it…” Tonks shrugged.  
“Hey Moony...what are you…?” another boy called out from a compartment to her left. He was handsome, with wavy black hair and grey eyes. For some reason, the man seemed a little familiar “ooooh….first year, isn’t it?”  
“What? Who?” another boy appeared at the door. He had black hair and glasses “Oh…!”  
Both boys were looking at Tonks curiously and she was sure her hair was probably turning neon pink by now.  
“Ah… I guess I’ll just go. Thanks for the help...bye”  
Tonks walked pass Lupin in her quest for a empty seat and managed to almost trip again, however, this time she actually managed to grab onto the wall to prevent the fall.  
“Ah...buggers…” she cursed softly glad that her mother wasn’t around to hear her. The girl walked away trying to keep her cool without noticing that the group of boys had been staring her as she walked off. Lupin watched the hooded figure move away with a slight amused look.  
“Oh...don’t tell me you liked her Moony...love at first sight?” Sirius laughed.  
“W-what?” he said surprised “What are you saying, Sirius?”  
“You were staring at her so goofily. Just like James stares at Evans…”  
“I do not!” James said indignant.  
Lupin rolled his eyes.  
“Did you ask her name at least, Moony?”Sirius asked once they had closed the compartment.  
“She said it was Tonks…”  
“Tonks?” James asked with a frown “Just Tonks?”  
“She doesn’t seem to like her first name…” Lupin shrugged.  
“Well, now I’m curious about her name. Guess we’ll find out later during the sorting, right Padfoot?...Pafoot?”  
Sirus seemed to be suddenly in thought.  
“Tonks...you say?” he said “I think I’ve heard that name before...I just can’t recall where…”  
“Another Noble family I take?” James laughed “Well, if it is so...she might end up being a slytherin.”  
“She doesn’t look like a slytherin.” Lupin said “I mean she seemed...nice.”  
“Yeah, well...let’s hope she doesn’t end up wearing green, for Moony’s sake…”  
“What’s that supposed to mean?”  
“Sorry mate, I just can’t see you dating a Slytherin…”  
“Oh, come on. Sirius...she tripped and I helped her!”  
“Hey, that’s how it starts….” Sirius laughed and Lupin sighed in defeat.

The boy knew his friend would keep bothering about it from now on. With some luck he’d find a new topic and let it go. However, he couldn’t deny that the girl had caught his attention.

***

The Great Hall was even more wonderful than Tonks had imagined. The thousand candles, the colorful banners and the magical starry sky above her head. Everything was just amazing. The first years had been lined up in the front as they were being assigned to their houses.  
This part of the opening ceremony wasn’t new to her. Her parents had already told her about the four houses. Her mother had once been in Slytherin and her dad was a proud Ravenclaw. She knew the characteristics of each house and she couldn’t help but think that she didn’t feel particularly related to any. She wasn’t brave as a Gryffindor, nor was she smart enough to fit in Ravenclaw as her dad did; she was definitely not a Slytherin. She wasn’t classy enough to wear the elegant green and silver that her mother did; maybe a Hufflepuff...she wasn’t sure..  
As usual, Tonks’s thoughts were so scattered that she had actually missed McGonagall calling her name.  
“TONKS, NYMPHADORA…” McGonagall repeated with a frown.  
Buggers. That’s me…  
In the middle of her confusion she rushed to make her way to the sorting hat, but in her haste, she tripped herself on the steps and fell unceremoniously at McGonagall's feet. The proffesor stared at her with a mix of worry, amusement and a frown and Tonks heard a wave of laughs engulfing the Great Hall.  
Well done, Tonks. You just made a complete fool of yourself in front of the WHOLE school. Dad is going love this...  
She could do nothing but laugh in embarrassment as she got back up with McGonagall’s help. At least her hood hadn’t fallen off when she tripped. THe last thing she needed was to make a fool of herself and show herself as a freak in front of everyone on her very first night.  
She was grateful that McGonagall didn’t ask her to remove the hood as she put the sorting hat on her head.  
A few minutes passed until….

“HUFFLEPUFF!” 

Not too far from where she sat, in the Gryffindor table, a group of boys had been watching with interest. Lupin couldn’t help but smile, when he saw the girl trip on the stairs.She wasn’t lying when she’d said that she was clumsy and he wondered how many other accidents had she got since their encounter in the train until now.  
“So her name is Nymphadora…” James said amused “Now I see why she doesn’t like it. A little too flashy, don’t you think?”  
“I just think it’s weird…” Peter said with a frown “Nympha…too strange….”  
“You got that one, Wormtail. No surprise she prefer her last name.”  
“It’s not that bad…” Lupin said. In fact he found the name pretty appealing. It sounded quite ...magical and feminine.  
“AHA…!”  
Sirius sudden bark made the three boys jump on their seat. Peter knocked his cup over the plate and making a small mess.  
“Bloody hell, Sirius…” James said as the table magically cleaned itself “What’s wrong with you?”  
“I knew I had heard that name…” He said “Nymphadora….yeah, my mum mentioned her before. She’s the daughter of one of my cousins…”  
“She’s your family?” James asked surprised.  
“Well...yeah, I guess. I mean...technically. But her mum was disowned from the Black family…”  
“What? Why?” Peter asked surprised.  
“...She married a muggleborn. You know my family with all that cack about pureblood and stuff. Pile of rubbish…honestly.” Sirius said annoyed.  
“Ha, but doesn’t that make her the second Black to be out of Slytherin ?” James laughed.  
“Cheers to that” Sirius laughed “Might try to befriend her. She’s family after all…”  
”She seems to be a nice person…” Lupin said as he watched the girl move down the stairs carefully. He could tell she was probably trying to prevent another fall and the thought made him smile.  
“Why is she wearing the hood?” Peter asked curiously.  
“Well, who cares. It’s not like there’s a rule about the uniform in Hogwarts. Maybe she just likes to wear it…” Sirius said matter of factly.  
“Mmm I dunno…” Peter said shaking his head.  
“Let her be, wormtail…” James laughed. 

Completely oblivious to what was happening at the Gryffindor table, Tonks made her way to the Hufflepuff table making sure she did not trip again. The other members of the house greeted her cordially, and she nodded gratefully as she dropped into her seat.  
The sorting ceremony was completed and after a few words from Dumbledore, dinner was served magically on their plates. With her anxiety and nerves, Tonks almost forgot how hungry she was.  
The food was delicious and after a while, everyone was satisfied and ready to go to bed. At least, Tonks knew she was. It wasn’t until she had reached the dormitory that she realized just how exhausted she was and before she even noticed, she had fallen asleep.

****  
Tonks wasn’t sure what she was expecting from her first week of school, but at least she could tell her parents that it hadn’t been that bad. She had managed to befriend her roomates from Hufflepuff at least. More than befriend, she was in friendly terms with them.  
The first week had given her a few clues of who she should avoid as well. The Slytherin students set their attention at her, but that was something she had already expected. Her parents had already warned her about it, so instead of dueling too much into their mean words, she avoided them as much as possible. She had began her “special lessons” with profesor Mc Gonagall as well; she was an expert on Transfigurations and, despite not being a metamorphmagus herself, she was extremely well informed about them. Tonks was excited about these lessons, and McGonagall had been impressed at her current control level.  
“I must admit Ms. Tonks; your ability is quite impressive. It needs more training, of course, but considering the circumstances, I’m impressed that you are able to morph yourself at will…”  
“Not all the time, professor…” Tonks replied shyly “I can change my face at will, but my hair still changes on its own depending of my mood.”  
“Well, Ms. Tonks...I can assure you that, for someone your age...being able to change your facial features is already impressive. I have good expectations about your training.”  
McGonagall smiled kindly at the girl as she watched her pull her -now light blue- hair into a bun and cover it with the hood of her robes.  
“I’ll see you on wednesday, Ms. Tonks…”  
“Yes, professor. Thank you. Have...a nice weekend.”  
Tonks waved at McGonagall and rushed out of her office. She was finally free, which meant that she could sneak to the Owlery to send the promised letter to her parents. Tonks was listing the things that she wanted to tell them when she crashed face against someone in the hallway and fell right on her butt.  
“Well...well….look what we have here?”  
Tonks raised her head and found herself surrounded by a group of five or six slytherin students. By the looks, it was a mix of first and second years.

Just great. Right what I needed.

“It’s that little blood traitor…”  
“Leave me alone, Boreas.” Tonks said firmly.  
She had promised her parents that she wouldn’t get herself into fights, but that didn’t meant that she’d stand quietly when someone was obviously trying to bully her. Boreas was a typical bully, the boy was tall and had broad shoulders. He could probably smash Tonks little body without difficulties.  
“I’m surprised your parents dared to send you here...Traitors like you shouldn’t be allowed in this place...you’re just as bad as a mudblood.”  
Tonks rolled her eyes as she jumped up.  
“Sorry to disappoint you, but not all people have your primitive thinking…” Tonks said at him bitterly.  
She hated when they badmouthed muggle born wizards and called them Mudbloods. Her father was a muggle born and as far as she was concerned, he was the greatest wizard in the world.  
“And you know….? If I didn’t knew better, I’d think all your blabbering about Mudbloods and blood traitors is just your way to say your afraid of them…”  
“Afraid? Please blood traitor….who would be afraid of a bunch of worthless mudbloods and alikes…”  
Worthless? They worth more than what you could ever be, arse….  
Tonks had to bite her lip to prevent her from saying that outloud.  
“As amazing as this conversation is...I’m afraid I have better things to do than listening to your cries about blood status. So, excuse me…”

Perhaps she was being a little too bold, but she needed to make an statement. She was not an easy target.  
“Running away? Seems like your mudblood father taught you how to be a coward. That’s what mudbloods like him do best after all...”  
There was a general wave of laughter and Tonks felt the anger raising in her. Her hair was fast growing from its current sky blue to a deep crimson. She could stand their insults, but they had no right to insult her father. Tonks’s small frame stopped on her tracks, she did a quick turn and stomped her way to Boreas whose face was contorting in laughter.  
“No, he did not teach me that…” Tonks said angrily “ But guess what he did teach me…”  
“How to be an idiot?” someone said and everyone laughed.  
“This…”  
Tonks closed her hand in a fist and before any of the Slytherins could react, her knuckles crashed against Boreas’s nose making a nasty crack. She could be quite small, but she wasn’t lying when she said her father had taught her how to throw out a good punch. When she was younger, she had seen a picture of one of her distant muggle cousins in a ballet outfit; and after hearing the explanation from her dad, she had begged him to let her learn. Due to her unstable gift and because wizards don’t usually do ballet, the idea was quickly discarded by her mum. She had sulked for a week before her dad had come with an idea. He was not ballet dancer, but he had learned martial arts when he was a kid, as a result, instead of learning ballet, she ended up learning how to kick butts even if size and weight were against her.  
“You pathetic and disgusting blood traitor….” Boreas snapped at her holding his nose. She saw- with some satisfaction- the thread of blood that was running down his hand “Flipendo!”  
The jinx hit her straight on her chest pushing her back a few steps and knocking her over. As a result her legs got tangled on her robes and before any of the presents could react, Tonks fell down the hill.  
She rolled all the way down through the bushes, scratching her arms and hitting her head with some rocks on the way. Her trip finally end when the terrain finally leveled up, and the first thing she noticed was an intense pain in her waist and left leg.  
Just great...this probably makes the top of your best trips, Tonks. She thought. She pushed herself up with some difficulty and looked around. She had rolled all the way down, from the main path to the Owlery, to the limits with the Forbidden Forest. That meant she would have to walk at least 700 yards uphill to get to the castle and judging by the piercing pain she was currently feeling, that sure was going to be a long...painful...walk.  
“Oh...well done Tonks…” she sighed “At least I broke that git’s nose…”  
The girl let out a low grunt and laid down on the grass for a while wondering if somebody if any of her room mater or even the prefect would notice her absence and come looking for her later. Then again, even if someone did look for her, she hadn’t told anyone she was heading to the Owlery. It’d take hours before they could find her.  
“Lucky me…”  
Tonks laid there staring at the blue sky for a while; at least she was having a bit of peace and the pain was starting to go away. Instead she was starting to lose sense of her leg, which she wasn’t sure was a good sign at all.  
“I found her…” a hoarse voice said. It was a voice she hadn’t heard before. “Look, she’s there…”  
“Oh, my god...Severus, is that blood?”  
“I think she’s hurt…”  
Out of sudden, two unfamiliar faces were staring at her. One was a girl wearing Gryffindor robes; her hair was long and cooper blonde and her eyes shone like gentle emeralds. The other- to Tonks surprise- wore Slytherin robes; he was thin, pale and his hair was raven black.  
“Hey, are you awake?” the boy asked.  
“...Yeah…?” Tonks replied a little confused.  
“I think she might have broken her leg, Severus…”  
“It seems so…” the boy nodded “I don’t think we can do anything, Lily.”  
“We need to take her to Madam Pomfrey then…” the cooper headed girl said “Hey, we need to move you, alright?”  
“It’d hurt…” the boy added.  
“I can take the pain...I think…” Tonks replied with a small smile “Call it experience...with my luck…”  
But as much as she was used to accidents, when the pair helped her out, the pain that shot up her waist was simply unbearable and she unconsciously let out a growl of pain.  
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” the girl named Lily said.  
“It’s okay...it’s okay…” Tonks said biting her lip “I think it is passing…”  
“Are you sure you can move?” the boy asked “It’s a long way to the hospital wing...maybe we should call someone…”  
“Ugh...no, no it’s fine…” Tonks replied testing her leg “I’m a tough cookie. I can make it…”  
“Are you sure? If it hurts too much let us know, okay? We’ll stop and go ask for help.” the girl added with deep concern in her eyes.  
“Yeah, it’s okay. Thank you…”  
The pair put each of her arms around their shoulders and the trio began their slow hike up to the castle. Tonks made a mental note to be wary of hills from now on, she didn’t want to go through this ever again.  
“My name is Lily Evans…” the girl said from her left “That’s my friend, Severus Snape. He heard a group of Slytherin boys talking about how they had pushed a first year down the hill and he was worried. So we came to check…”  
“I didn’t say I was…” Severus began, but Tonks was sure the boys ears were turning pink.  
“Pushed?” Tonks blurted out “Ugh...that’s what they said? Well...honestly, it is not like I’m proud of it, but it was more like I pushed myself down the hill if you know what I mean. My dad said I was born with two left feet…”  
“Oh, I noticed. You did trip during your Sorting Ceremony…” Lily chuckled “Nymphadora, right?”  
“Oh, Merlin...please. Just call me Tonks…”  
“But Nymphadora is such a pretty name…”  
“It is not.  
“So why did they attack you?” Snape asked.  
“Those Slytherin Bullies? They insulted my dad...so I might have lost my temper and...broke Boreas’s nose…”  
“You did that?” Snape said astonished “With a spell?”  
“Err...no. With a punch…” Tonks said embarrassed “Sometimes I forget I can use a wand…”  
Tonks heard a loud giggle from Lily.  
“You sure have a good punch, not that he’s going to admit it though.”  
“He said he fell from his broom…” Snape clarified.  
“Of course he did, didn’t he? He’ll never admit that a 11 years old girl broke his nose with a punch…” Tonks said rolling her eyes.  
“Of course he wouldn’t, Slytherin’s pride…” Lily smiled “But you didn’t get so lucky either, huh?”  
“Yeah, but in my defense...I could say the damage was technically self inflicted…”  
“That’s not better…” Snape said with a frown.  
“I have my pride, too, you know?”  
“And what’s honorable about breaking your hip yourself?”  
Tonks shrugged.  
“Clumsy is my presentation card…”  
“You’re so funny, Tonks…” Lily laughed.  
“I thinks that’s stupid…” Snape said shaking his head.  
“Hey…”  
“Well, at least you won’t get in problems for punching Boreas.” Snape said helping her up to trail that lead back to the castle “He’d rather died than admit you actually hurt him…”  
“On the bright side...maybe he’ll be scared enough to keep his distance, now.”  
“How did you do that? I mean...Boreas is a big boy and you...well, you’re not that...big. Not offense…” Lily asked.  
“None taken…”Tonks smiled “My dad is muggle born. He did martial arts for many years. When I said I wanted to learn ballet and I couldn’t because of certain situation, he taught me martial arts instead...not that feminine as ballet, but much more useful.”  
“Oh, your dad is muggle born? I am too!” Lily smiled “Is that why they pick on you?”  
“Yeah...among other things…”  
“Her mother is a blood traitor…” Snape told Lily “That’s even worse than being muggle born…”  
“Hey…”  
“No offense…” Snape quickly said.  
“Blood traitor?”  
“My mum was from a powerful family of pure bloods, something like that...but she fell in love with my dad and abandoned her lineage. So basically, she was disowned and marked as a blood traitor...” Tonks explained cooly.  
“Oh, I’m sorry…”  
“No, it’s fine. We are happy like that. I don’t think my mum regrets it anyway.”  
“The Blacks are an influential family. Not surprise they are trying to pick on you…”  
“Wait, the Blacks?” Lily said looking at Snape.  
“Yes, my mum. Her maiden name was Andromeda Black…” Tonks nodded “You know more about me than myself I think…”  
“Heh, you’ve been the subject in the Slytherin common room since the first day…” Snape explained “I’ve heard all kind of stuff.”  
“But...Black...then you’re related to Sirius Black?”  
“Who?”  
“Sirius Black…” Lily repeated “Tall, black haired idiot? He walks around with his little gang of bullies. Honestly, the only decent one there is probably Lupin…”  
“Err….I might know Lupin, I think I crashed with him in the train; but I have no idea who Sirius Black is…”  
“But...if you’re a Black, that means you’re related no?”  
“Weeell….technically, I’m a Tonks, not a Black so. My mum isn’t in speaking terms with her family. I don’t know any of them…”  
“Oh, that makes sense…” Lily nodded “Well, beware. He’s a dork.”  
“Okay...I’ll keep that in mind. You don’t like him, do you?”  
“He’s always bullying Severus…” Lily said annoyed “And he thinks he’s a big deal...pff…”  
“That’s fine, Lily. I can take care of myself...Watch up the stairs…”  
Tonks had to bite her lip again once more to prevent a groan. In order to step to the first stair, she’d had to give a small jump, and the pain it caused was undescribable.  
“You okay?”  
“Yeah...yeah...it’s fine...ugh…”  
“Still think we should tell a professor what they did. I mean, they should have helped you...what if we hadn’t come? You would have stayed out there the whole night...and you were bleeding!” Lily said indignant “I’m glad Severus decided to look for you…”  
“Me? It was your idea, Lily…”  
“I’d probably found a way to crawl my way back up…” Tonks shrugged “I was trying to catch my breath when you two found me. Still ...thank you, Snape.”  
“I said...it was Lily’s idea…”  
Tonks smirked. For a Slytherin, Snape seemed to be a really shy and humble person. Her mother was right, not all slytherins were arses.  
“We are almost in the Hospital Wing…”  
“Thank Merlin. I hope they have some good painkilling potions…” Tonks groaned and Lily laughed loudly.


	3. Threads that connect us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first time she didn't know,  
> the second time she could change it all

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once Again. I'm not a native ENG Speaker, so forgive any mistake in grammar or spelling!

2  
"I don't understand it any more than you do, but one thing I've learned is that you don't have to understand things for them to be."  
— Madeleine L'Engle 

 

Sirius, James and Remus were sitting under a tree. Both James and Sirius were spread over the grass with their hands behind their heads, while Remus was diligently reading a book. The only one missing from the unfamous quartet was Peter. He had left to get some snacks from the kitchen and hadn’t returned yet.  
“Wormtail sure is taking his time huh…?”Sirius barked “Ten sickles that he already ate everything on the way here?”  
“Hah, tricky bet, Padfoot...tricky bet…” James laughed “Maybe he just stopped for a nap.”  
“Actually...there he comes…” Remus said lifting his eyes from the book.  
Peter’s face was red and sweaty. It seemed like he had run all the way from the castle to them.  
“Finally! Hey...what happened to the snacks…”  
“S-s-snacks? Ah...I forgot…”  
“Forgot?Ha” James burst laughing “Wormtail, for Merlin’s sake...the whole point of you going back to the castle was to get snacks...how did you forget?”  
“Ahh...I got distracted.”  
“And care to explain what could be more important than the snacks?” Sirius asked with a raised eyebrow.  
“Slytherins…”  
“Aha….”  
“Seems like...someone. A first year, broke Boreas’s nose…with a punch.”  
“WHAT?” Both Sirius and James snapped.  
“Are you sure about that, Peter?” Remus asked.  
“Yeah, he and his gang were complaining about it. I heard them talk…”  
“Hahaha...What I’d have paid to see that…” Sirius laughed “Who was the kid? Deserves a hell of a prize…A first year with guts, let me tell you. I might like him...”  
“ That’s the best part…” Peter giggled “It wasn’t a he….it was she.”  
“A girl?” Remus said surprised.  
“A girl…? Well, I didn’t see that one coming.” James laughed “His slytherin pride must be torn, now haha…”  
“Is she okay?” Remus asked concerned. He knew that Boreas wouldn’t be so forgiving about someone who humiliated him.  
“Always the gentleman, Moony...worrying about others’ well being.”  
“It’s not funny, Sirius. You know Boreas temper…” Remus said shaking his head.  
“Actually...it seems that he pushed the girl over down the hill.”  
“He what?” Remus snapped horrified.  
“Now, that’s not nice…” Sirius said with frown “Is the kid okay?”  
“I ran pass her on my way here. Evans and Snape were helping her back to the castle. Honestly, she didn’t look that good. Quite pale and I think there was some blood on her robes…” Peter shrugged “It was that Hufflepuff girl with the hoodie…”  
“Tonks?” Remus said with wide eyes.  
“Are you bloody sure, Wormtail? That cack bag of Slytherin scum hurt my cousin?”  
“Err...Sirius, you do realize that until some days ago you had no idea who she was?” James said laughing.  
“So what? I like the kid...She punched a Slytherin and broke his nose without magic. That’s a thousand times more respectable than anything my family has ever done if you ask me…”  
“Yeah...it’s not hard to miss. The hood I mean. How many Hufflepuff girls walk around school with their hoods permanently on?”  
“...That’s a valid point.” James nodded “So what are you going to do, Padfoot ? Are you going to get payback from Boreas?”  
“Maybe we should go check on her first. Before you do anything rash, Sirius.” Remus suggested closing his book. He was actually concerned about Tonks “She probably doesn’t know anything about you either.”  
“Guess Moony is right.” Sirius nodded “First stop, the Hospital Wing. Then I can get payback…”  
The Gryffindor quartet was soon making their way back to the Castle. The Hospital Wing was empty except for a tiny figure laying on the bed closest to the window. Madam Pomfrey was staring at the girl sternly and judging by her look she was most likely scolding her.  
“Ms. Tonks… a broken hip isn’t something you get from tripping.”  
“Well...I guess it is, if you trip and roll 700 yard down a hill?”  
“It’s not funny, young lady. “  
“I know it isn’t. I’m dying of pain right now…”  
Remus smiled when Madam Pomfrey let out an irritated sigh.  
“Alright...I’ll bring some painkilling potions, too. Stay here and don’t move, Ms. Tonks. For your own sake, don’t move.”  
“Ohhh...even if I wanted to, I doubt I could...considering my current state, madam.”  
“Very funny, Ms. Tonks...oh...Black, Potter, Petigrew and Lupin. What are you four doing here?”  
Tonks pushed herself up a little to look at them and Remus saw the girl make out a pained face, before dropping back on to the bed.  
“Good afternoon, Madam Pomfrey…” Sirius said giving her his charmest smile “I heard my cousin had gotten herself into and accident and I wanted to check on her.”  
“Your cousin? Oh...of course, you mean Ms. Tonks. Well, Mr. Black. As you might see, she’s lying over there. She somehow managed to trip and break her hip, but it’s nothing that can’t be solved with a bone fixing potion. Unfortunately, she might have troubles walking for a few days.”  
“So it isn’t nothing grave? Someone said there was bleeding…”  
“Oh yes, she lost a bit of blood, but nothing life threatening.” Madam Pomfrey replied “You may do her company while I go for the potions; but...don’t make her move.”  
“Understood, madam.”  
Madam Pomfrey stared at the four boys sternly before leaving the room. The quartet walked closer to the bed. Since Remus was the most familiar with the girl, he was the first to greet her with a smile.  
“Oh, well. This is embarrassing. It seems that each time we bump to each other I’m in a rather disadvantageous position…” Tonks chuckled.  
The girl sure had a humor that didn’t match her age.  
“You didn’t have to fall down a hill to prove me your point about clumsiness…” Remus smiled at her “Are you okay?”  
“Splendid…” Tonks replied “I just happen to have a few broken bones, but you already knew that…”  
Remus heard Sirius bark another laugh.  
“Geez, I like her. Hey, cousin. Nice to meet you.” Sirius said coming to greet her.  
“Oooh, let me guess. Sirius Black, right?” Tonks said staring at the boy “I little bird warned me about you.”  
“Good or bad?”  
“You tell me…” Tonks replied “ I’d say 50-50. Then again, nobody is perfect. But you don’t seem to be that bad…”  
“I take that as a compliment…” Sirius smiled “ These are my friends, James and Peter and you already knew Remus.”  
“Wotcher…” Tonks smiled “Call me Tonks. I’d get up to address you properly, but well...”  
“Don’t worry about it. Why didn’t you tell Madam Pomfrey it was Boreas who pushed you down the hill?” Remus asked with a kind look.  
“Well, technically speaking. I did trip and fell downhill, so there’s no lie there. I just omitted the part where Boreas used the knockback jinx on me and made me trip…” Tonks shrugged “It’s not big deal, honestly. I did break his nose, so I think it was worth it.”  
“Yeah, we heard about that. Well, done cousin.” Sirius snorted “but mind if I ask you what triggered that?”  
“Well...since he was so interested on knowing what my mudblood father had taught me, I just thought I should show him.” Tonks replied with a smile, but Remus noticed the bitterness in her words “He can make fun of me as much as he pleases, but he shouldn’t drag my parents into it.”  
“Fair enough. That’s a low blow…” James agreed “You were brave to stand against him. I mean, he’s a second year. Not many first years would dare…”  
“Well, my dad always says...a bully is a bully, and it’s important that you stand up to them or they’ll keep getting you.”  
“Wise words…” Remus nodded “but not if they will end up putting you in the hospital.”  
“Well, to be fair. I would have ended up here eventually ...with my amazing ability to trip on my face, as you may notice....”  
Remus smiled at her.  
“ We might have to do something about that…”  
“Nah, my parent’s already tried and failed miserably. I’ll just enjoy the small bits of pampering and hope I won’t end up scared.”  
“Yeah, I think I can definitely say you’re my favorite cousin…” Sirius laughed.  
“Well, I might as well take that as a compliment, shouldn’t I?”  
Tonks pushed herself up making an obvious face of pain. Both Sirius and Remus were helped her into a sitting position; the later put the pillows behind her back in gentleman manner.  
“So...I heard Evans helped you. Guess you were lucky…” James said crossing his arms over his chest.  
“Oh, yes. I’ll have to come up with something to pay her and Snape’s kindness. Merlin knows how long it would have been before someone noticed my absence. I just got lucky he heard those green bullies and was concerned enough to go check…”  
“Snape?” Remus said surprised.  
“Wait? Snivellus?” James said wide eyed “He what? You mean he was the one who went looking for you?”  
“You look surprised…” Tonks said with a frown “Yeah, not like he’d admit it. He kept pushing the credits to Lily, but I’m good at reading people. He’s a good boy despite his looks…”  
“Are we talking about the same Snape?” Sirius seemed skeptical.  
Lily had complained to her about her cousin and his gang poor relations with Snape. Her annoyance was primary directed to Sirius and James.  
“Petigrew just follow their lead blindly; Lupin isn’t that bad, he doesn’t go against Severus, but he doesn’t stop the other two from doing it either…” she had said. “It’s simply annoying. They call themselves the Marauders, or something stupid like that…”  
Tonks could help, but feel amused at Lily’s indignation, while the real victim simply kept quiet. Snape was obviously not talker, and despite having some obvious Sytherin traits, Tonks could tell the boy was good.  
“Yup, unless he has a twin brother that I haven’t met.”  
“Two Snivellus? That’d be a nightmare…” James chuckled.  
“Why do you call him that?” Tonks asked frowning.  
“Why not?”  
“Well, it’s not nice….”  
“He’s a Slytherin, there’s nothing nice about the green snakes…” James snorted.  
Tonks glared at James. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him with irritation. The look would have been intimidating if it hadn’t been interrupted by her soft groan as the movement had sent a wave of pain up her hip. Her dad used to call it the “Black glare” and he always laughed saying that it was probably the only trait she’d inherited from her maternal family.  
“Oooh….that sent chills down my back. I could almost see my mum in that glare” Sirus said shivering.  
“You know...that’s a little prejudiced and stereotyped…” Tonks said a stern voice that made her sound older than she looked. She had completely ignored Sirius and her dark eyes were stuck on James “Not all Slytherins are bad, the same as not all Gryffindors are saints…”  
“Woah...no need to get so worked out…” Jamos said raising his arms dejectedly.  
Tonks let out an irritated sigh. Maybe it was because of her parents influence, or the way she had grown because of her little gift; but if there was something that she found stupid was prejudice.  
“My mum was a Slytherin…” she said with a frown “ Sometimes you need to look a little deeper before you judge. Not all wolves are out eat the sheep,you know?”  
The group was suddenly staring at her dumbfounded and Tonks blinked in confusion. Maybe it was her imagination, but she thought she had seen Remus pale a little.  
“What did you…?” he muttered softly.  
“Did you just said...wolves?”  
“Err...yeah?” Tonks shrugged.  
“From all animals in the world...wolves?” Sirius asked.  
“Hey...those poor things are always misunderstood…” Tonks defended poking his cousin’s chest with a finger “Always the bad guy of the story….but do you know that, among all the animals in the world, wolves are among the smartest and most loyal creatures?”  
“Ok, ok...I get that...so you’re a wolf lover…” Sirius laughed looking at Lupin with a raised eyebrow.  
“I might have a strange inclination for them…” Tonks shrugged “Dad said it was weird that I prefered a wolf plush toy instead of a doll when I was younger. Then again...I’ve never been normal to begin with…”  
The last part she muttered it softly.  
“What was that again?”  
“Nothing… so in conclusion, just because other people say something is bad, doesn’t mean it is bad. So stop using the Slytherin is bad excuse to bully and innocent boy...that doesn’t make you any better than Boreas…”  
“Auch...that was a low blow.” Sirius laughed “Fine… we’ll dislike Snape for being Snape, and not for being a Slyth.”  
“Hey, who knows maybe you’ll be up for a surprise. Maybe you’ll like him after knowing him better…”  
“THAT is not going to happen.”  
“Ok...boys always have to be stubborn…”  
“You talk like you have experience with boys…” James said curiously.  
“That’s what my mum always says. I never had much interaction with other kids…”  
“Why?” Peter asked curiously.  
“That...is a story for another day…”  
At the moment, Madam Pomfrey came into the room an handled Tonks a cup with smoking content. The potion smelled weird and tasted even worse, but the effect was instantaneous, the pain that ran down from her hip to her leg began to fade away.  
“Very well, Ms. Tonks...I do hope you won’t be rolling down hills anytime soon.” Madam Pomfrey said after checking that the bones on her hip had mended properly.  
“Ah...too bad, I think I was starting to find the fun at it…”  
Madam Pomfrey clicked my tongue in a gesture of censure.  
“No doubt you’re Ted Tonks daughter…”  
“Proudly…” Tonks grinned.  
“You’re good enough to leave, but I think it might be better for you to stay here for a couple days. Walking up stairs will still be painful...”  
“Stairs and I have always had a complicated relationship.”  
“I can imagine. Very well, you lot. Don’t stay too long…”  
With those words the healer had turned on her heels and walked back into her office.  
“A complicated relationship?” Sirius asked.  
“Call it a love triangle between the steps, me and the floor…”  
The group giggled. With all the complains that Lily had dropped on her, Tonks had been sure that Sirius and his gang were a bunch of prats, but after talking with them for a bit she realized that the boys weren’t as bad as Lily described them.  
“Ah...buggers. I didn’t get to mail my letter to my parents…” she realized.  
“Would you like me to send the owl for you?” Remus offered nicely.  
“Ah, I wouldn’t want to make you walk all the way to the Owlery to send a letter that isn’t yours…” Tonks chuckled “I appreciate the intention though. I guess I’ll do it tomorrow…”

***  
“Well….I like here. It’s nice to know that I still have some nice relatives….” Sirius said cheerfully.  
They had spent most of the afternoon in the hospital wing talking to Tonks. The girl was funny, friendly and likeable and Sirius had totally decided that she was his new favorite relative.  
“She’s sort of weird though…” James said rubbing his chin.  
“I said that since the beginning. She didn’t put down her hood during all the time we were there…” Peter said “Do you think she might have horns or snake hair?”  
“Don’t be ridiculous, Wormtail…”  
“Pushing away the hood thing though…”James said “Isn’t it weird that she kind of...likes Snivellus?”  
“Her point was valid though…” Remus said shaking her head “Perhaps...he isn’t as bad as we take him for…”  
“Moony, I think you’re just a little biased with her…” Sirius chuckled “She likes wolves, so hey...it might work. For the record...I approve the relationship...”  
“She’s 11, Sirius….”  
“So what? We’re 12, next year we’ll be 13 and she’ll be 12….no one said it had to be now.”  
Lupin rolled his eyes at his friend words. However he had a strange feeling lurking in the back of his mind. For a 11 years old girl, her thinking felt beyond her age.  
“Next time we should ask her what she thinks about werewolves….” Sirius suggested.  
“Sirius...no…”  
“Relax, you know I wouldn’t tell her; but I’m still curious what her reaction would be.”  
“Probably the same that everyone else’s…”  
“Well...one never knows. ”  
Lupin decided to ignore his friend as he made his way into the Great Hall to have dinner. The conversation was soon forgotten and replaced with more random subjects, but Lupin couldn’t brush off the strange sensation that kept naggin the back of his mind. 

***  
Saturdays were uneventful days in Hogwarts. First and second years had the day free to roam the grounds and the Castle while older students could visit the neighboring Town. Tonks had heard thousands of stories about Hogsmeade from her parents, but despite all the nice things, she found out she wasn’t that overly excited about visiting the place.  
Hogwarts was interesting enough to keep her overactive mind preoccupied after all, and after begging and promising the school’s healer that she would be wary of her steps, she was finally given the green light to leave the hospital wing.  
Madam Pomfrey hadn’t been lying when she said that her hip would bother her despite the potion. Her leg felt stiff and if she laid to much weight on to it, it hurt pretty badly, but after testing it a bit, she realized that if she kept a slow, she wouldn’t have problems to walk to the owlery.  
The day was beautifully clear and the fresh breeze was alluring as she followed stoned trail. She felt particularly lucky that she hadn’t crossed paths with any of the green bullies; she did stumble with both Lily and Snape as they were heading to the library to work on some reports that were due to next week.  
“Well, wotcher, Sade. I bet you missed me yesterday…”she said scratching the owl’s head “I hope mum and dad won’t be too annoyed for receiving a very late letter. Try to speak a little in my favor, would you?”  
The honey colored owl turned its head to her and stared her with his big green eyes.  
“Don’t look at me like that. It isn’t like I skipped on purpose.  
, I got myself caught in an unpleasant accident. Just let mum and dad know I’m all good and stopping being so nosy, you old owl...”  
Tonks knew that the bird could speak, but she had gotten used to talk to him since she was younger. Even though she wasn’t entirely sure if she understood fully, she was sure she could make out some of the things that bird tried to tell her sometimes.  
“Yeah, I’m doing okay so far. I think I might had made a couple friends. One unknown cousin among them...what is ironical in here is that none of them are in the same house as me. Well, not that it matters. My lessons with McGonagall started well...maybe I’ll be able to keep this….” she said pointing at her hood “down by the end of the term...wouldn’t that be nice?”  
The sound of a broken branch startled her and she turned right on time to come face to face with Lupin who was climbing up the stairs.  
“Wotcher…” she greeted him with wide eyes “By yourself today?”  
Lupin seemed as surprised to see her as she was. The boy stared at her with bright green eyes before smiling at her politely; a smile that evoked a strange sense of deja vu.  
“Hello, Tonks. Yes, my friends seem to enjoy the chance to sleep in on a saturday.”  
“A joy that you don’t seem to fancy, apparently. I take you’re the early bird of the quartet…”  
“More or less. You’re early for a saturday as well.”  
“Postal duties…”she chuckled in response “My parents would worry if I didn’t write as promised…”  
“I think all parents do...” Lupin nodded as he picked one brown bird and tied a rolled piece of parchment to its claw “How’s your hip?”  
“Much better… but I’m afraid I have an ugly limp. And it took me 30 minutes to reach this place…”she chuckled.  
Lupin tilted his head slightly. His green eyes staring at her thoughtfully.  
“Are you heading back to the castle?”  
“I..suppose? I thought of taking a stroll to see the views. My dad always talk about the views fondly. But knowing my luck, I might break my other leg...” she laughed.  
“It’s a nice day for a stroll...mind some company?”  
“Oh that’d be nice.”  
The pair walked out of the tower.Tonks’s steps were slow, but Lupin had adjusted his pace to follow hers, from the four boys in Sirius’s gang, it was obvious he was the one with the best manners.  
“You can see Hogsmeade from here…” he said pointing ahead of them “right over there…”  
“Looks like a cosy town….” Tonks smiled “You’ll be able to visit it next year, right?”  
“Yes. Sirius and James can’t wait to visit the shops…”  
“And you?”  
“Maybe one or two…” he smiled modestly.  
“Mmm...let me guess….a bookstore?”  
“Am I that predictable?” he smiled shyly.  
“No, no...it was a guess. You’re always carrying a book after all…”  
“You noticed?”  
“It seems that I am quite observative. My dad says it will come in handy when I decide what my career after Hogwarts will be…”  
“You also said that you could read people…”  
Tonks bit her bit distractedly.  
“Mmmm...I don’t know how I do it. My parents asked me before, but I just...know.” she replied “small things that you normally wouldn’t pay attention to...small details tell a lot, don’t you think?”  
Lupin stared at her curiously. Yesterday he had thought her thoughts were a little beyond her age, now this girl was telling him that she could analyze people by watching them? He was suddenly quite interested.  
“Would you show me?”  
“Sure, as long as you don’t mind that I use you as model since there’s nobody else around haha…”  
“I can live with that. I‘m really curious…”  
Tonks smiled at him and started cycling around him with meticulous eyes.  
“You like to read, you probably stay late reading at night under the light of your wand. Sometimes magic books, some other just fiction to kill time. You like to write notes at the margin of the books...and probably you mark the passages that you like …”  
“How did…?”  
“Your hands...they’re stained with ink. The color is quite weak, so it isn’t fresh and your book, I can see the ink lines in the margins…” she chuckled “The rest was pure guess...just to make it interesting…”  
“That’s...amazing…”  
“You think? My dad would take to the park sometimes and we’d sit down and watch the people around and try to guess their story. Dad was convinced that I was a auror on my past life haha…”  
“You’re are really fond of your parents…”  
“Who isn’t fond of his parents? Well, except Sirius. I didn’t have the chance to have many friends when I was younger, so my playmates were always mum or dad…”  
“Why?”  
“I have my reasons. If you keep being such a nice boy with me, I might consider telling you…” she answered winking at him playfully.  
“Sounds like a deal…”  
Tonks chuckled and continued walking with her small limp. Lupin walking by her side, making random comments and pointing her some of the grounds best points like a tourist guide would. Unlike James and Sirius, he was more of a shy and quiet boy, especially when it came to people from the other gender, so he found surprising, how easy he could speak to Tonks. He felt comfortable talking to her; it was a sensation of familiarity, almost as if...they’d known each other for a long time.  
“You don’t look like a trouble maker, you know? How did you end up with a bunch of pranksters?”  
“Well, we share rooms...to begin with. Bonding was just a natural thing…”  
“I guess that makes sense…” she nodded.  
“What about you? Haven’t you made friends in your house…”  
“Contrary to what many would think...it seems I am much less social than I look. They’re nice, good people I’m sure...it’s just…”  
Tonks words lingered for a bit with the incomplete idea. The girl was looking at the green fields that surrounded Hogwarts lost in thought. It was something hard to explain, but she had troubles when it came to trusting people. Her parents had said that it’d been like that since she was a baby. Tonks could be friendly and adorable, but that was all. Unless she got to know the person well enough, she wouldn’t give in completely into the interaction. Her parents had been slightly taken back by their daughter’s social abilities, but accepted it nevertheless. Her dad usually joked that at least, he could be sure that she would never run away with some useless brat when she was older. It was then that the girl realized something. She didn’t seem to have problems trusting Lupin or Sirius the day before. Their interactions had come out naturally; like old friends that had years of not seeing each other. With James and Peter, it was different, she felt awkward about the boy with glasses, and wary about the smaller one.  
“Just…?”  
Lupin’s voice dragged her out of her thoughts. The boy was staring at her carefully and she grinned at him.  
“Sorry...kind of spaced out. What was I saying…?”  
“Something about your roomates…”  
“Oh, yeah. Ehm...they’re okay. You know that tree really is the weirdest tree I’ve ever seen in my life…”  
“Ah...that’s the whomping willow. You better keep yourself away from it unless you like Madam Pomfrey’s company. It has a very bad temper...”  
“Ah...well, as friendly as she might be...I don’t think she likes me enough to see me that often; and ...I might be a klutz, but I do have a sense of survival...I’ll keep my distance.”  
“Smart…” Lupin laughed “At least you’re not like your cousin in that sense. Sirius seems to enjoy the adrenaline of putting himself in the edge…”  
“Well...as long as he doesn’t get himself killed for something stupid. Constant vigilance…”  
“Constant vigilance?”  
“Aha...I don’t know where I heard that, honestly, but you know the drill...be wary of everything, danger lurks in every corner...booooo” Tonks replied jokingly.  
“You...know….sometimes it feels like you’re not 11 years old at all…” Lupin chuckled “If Sirius had your level of thinking, he’d spent less time in detention with James…”  
“Oh, I’d get myself in detention eventually. That’s just my luck. So Mr. Tourist Guide, what else will you show me?”  
“How about the animal pen? Hagrid’s cabin is right down this way…”  
“Then lead the way. I trust you’ll make sure I won’t stumble down to a another broken hip….”  
“I think I can catch you if you fall…”  
“As long as I don’t drag you with me, of course!”

Lupin smiled at the girl as they walked down to Hagrid’s cabin. Hagrid wasn’t home, and Lupin guessed that he was probably at Hogsmeade with the older students. There would be another chance to introduce Tonks to him. The friendly creatures were kept in a small pen behind of Hagrid’s cabin; most of them were small animals like ocamies, nifflers, kneazels and puffskeins.  
“Awwwww, aren’t those incredible cute?” Tonks said grabbing the fence of the pen with glittering eyes “ Look at them! They look so furry and squishable…”

Lupin couldn’t help but laugh at the girl’s reaction. That was more like the kind of behavior he’d expect from a girl like her.  
“ Ah...adorable. I think I have a soft spot for furry animals haha…”  
“I bet you have pets at home..”  
“Unfortunately no. I wish I had though. It’d have been nice to have some company. Hey look, isn’t that your gang?”  
Lupine turned on his heels and looked toward the castle. James and Sirius walked down the path to them with laughter and jokes, while Peter followed enthusiastically.  
“Heh, seems like our tour is over…” Tonks chuckled.  
“Heeeet you two…” Sirius shouted loudly “Tonksieee….”  
“Wotcher me dear lost cousin...did you enjoy your sleep?”  
“Yeah, I was dreaming about dragons and dogs….”  
“Dragons and dogs? Well, that’s a interesting combo…”  
“Nah, it was good. What about you two, heh? Moony you should have told me you were going to meet my cous...”  
“Ah, mind you. It seems that Lupin and I had the awesome idea of sending mail at the same time today and since you, bunch of sleepy heads, were out of business and I have pretty much nothing to do, he was showing me around.”  
“Oh, that sounds like it was fun…” James said “Saw anything interesting?”  
“Uhm...well, that depends of what you consider interesting, I guess; but it was enjoyable. Thank you...now that your gang is back up, it’s my cue to leave you alone…” she added winking at Lupin “ Show me around some other time, would you?”  
“I…” Lupin began, but was interrupted by Sirius loud voice.  
“Ah, you leaving?” Sirius asked surprised.  
“Don’t leave because of us!” James added with a smile.  
“Mmmm...no at all, but I’m sure you don’t want a girl nosing around your boy adventures. See you guys around then…”  
Before any of them could say something to stop her, the girl turned around and began walking towards the castle with a small limp. The four boys were left watching her back as her image gre smaller and smaller.  
“I said...weeeeeird….” Peter groaned.  
“Ah...she’s just shy with boys, I guess…” James shrugged “It happens…”  
“She didn’t seem that shy with Moony…” Sirius pouted.  
“Don’t tell me you’re jealous, Sirius…” James laughed “ just because your cousin prefers Moony over you haha…”  
“I am no jealous!”  
“I think you are…”  
“I say I am not….!”

Lupin rolled his eyes and smiled. Sirius and James were too busy bickering with each other and Peter was watching them amused. None of them noticed that he wasn’t even paying attention to them anymore, as his glance was staring at the tiny hooded figure that walked slow but confidently to the castle.  
Maybe Tonks was weird,but he liked her weirdness.


	4. One way or another

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello. I am actually surprised about about the reception that the story has received. Thank you very much!  
> To answer Seanna's question:  
> In the original timeline, they become animagus later in the story. In this timeline they turn animagus a little ealier (around 3rd and fourth year). But they had begun trying since they learned about Remus furry little secret. Now,I doubt the animal you turn into, as an animagus, is randomly chosen, so in my Headcanon for this story, each of the Marauders had already made up their minds of what they wanted to become and so they had already gotten their nicknames.  
> I hope this clears up things a little!
> 
> Once more, I apologise for any grammar/ spelling errors! Hope you enjoy this!   
> Blessings!

"I don't understand it any more than you do, but one thing I've learned is that you don't have to understand things for them to be."   
— Madeleine L'Engle 

Sirius, James and Remus were sitting under a tree. Both James and Sirius were spread over the grass with their hands behind their heads, while Remus was diligently reading a book. The only one missing from the unfamous quartet was Peter. He had left to get some snacks from the kitchen and hadn’t returned yet.   
“Wormtail sure is taking his time huh…?”Sirius barked “Ten sickles that he already ate everything on the way here?”  
“Hah, tricky bet, Padfoot...tricky bet…” James laughed “Maybe he just stopped for a nap.”  
“Actually...there he comes…” Remus said lifting his eyes from the book.   
Peter’s face was red and sweaty. It seemed like he had run all the way from the castle to them.  
“Finally! Hey...what happened to the snacks…”  
“S-s-snacks? Ah...I forgot…”  
“Forgot?Ha” James burst laughing “Wormtail, for Merlin’s sake...the whole point of you going back to the castle was to get snacks...how did you forget?”  
“Ahh...I got distracted.”  
“And care to explain what could be more important than the snacks?” Sirius asked with a raised eyebrow.   
“Slytherins…”  
“Aha….”  
“Seems like...someone. A first year, broke Boreas’s nose…with a punch.”  
“WHAT?” Both Sirius and James snapped.  
“Are you sure about that, Peter?” Remus asked.  
“Yeah, he and his gang were complaining about it. I heard them talk…”  
“Hahaha...What I’d have paid to see that…” Sirius laughed “Who was the kid? Deserves a hell of a prize…A first year with guts, let me tell you. I might like him...”  
“ That’s the best part…” Peter giggled “It wasn’t a he….it was she.”  
“A girl?” Remus said surprised.   
“A girl…? Well, I didn’t see that one coming.” James laughed “His slytherin pride must be torn, now haha…”  
“Is she okay?” Remus asked concerned. He knew that Boreas wouldn’t be so forgiving about someone who humiliated him.  
“Always the gentleman, Moony...worrying about others’ well being.”  
“It’s not funny, Sirius. You know Boreas temper…” Remus said shaking his head.   
“Actually...it seems that he pushed the girl over down the hill.”  
“He what?” Remus snapped horrified.   
“Now, that’s not nice…” Sirius said with frown “Is the kid okay?”  
“I ran pass her on my way here. Evans and Snape were helping her back to the castle. Honestly, she didn’t look that good. Quite pale and I think there was some blood on her robes…” Peter shrugged “It was that Hufflepuff girl with the hoodie…”  
“Tonks?” Remus said with wide eyes.  
“Are you bloody sure, Wormtail? That cack bag of Slytherin scum hurt my cousin?”  
“Err...Sirius, you do realize that until some days ago you had no idea who she was?” James said laughing.  
“So what? I like the kid...She punched a Slytherin and broke his nose without magic. That’s a thousand times more respectable than anything my family has ever done if you ask me…”  
“Yeah...it’s not hard to miss. The hood I mean. How many Hufflepuff girls walk around school with their hoods permanently on?”   
“...That’s a valid point.” James nodded “So what are you going to do, Padfoot ? Are you going to get payback from Boreas?”  
“Maybe we should go check on her first. Before you do anything rash, Sirius.” Remus suggested closing his book. He was actually concerned about Tonks “She probably doesn’t know anything about you either.”  
“Guess Moony is right.” Sirius nodded “First stop, the Hospital Wing. Then I can get payback…”  
The Gryffindor quartet was soon making their way back to the Castle. The Hospital Wing was empty except for a tiny figure laying on the bed closest to the window. Madam Pomfrey was staring at the girl sternly and judging by her look she was most likely scolding her.  
“Ms. Tonks… a broken hip isn’t something you get from tripping.”   
“Well...I guess it is, if you trip and roll 700 yard down a hill?”   
“It’s not funny, young lady. “  
“I know it isn’t. I’m dying of pain right now…”  
Remus smiled when Madam Pomfrey let out an irritated sigh.   
“Alright...I’ll bring some painkilling potions, too. Stay here and don’t move, Ms. Tonks. For your own sake, don’t move.”  
“Ohhh...even if I wanted to, I doubt I could...considering my current state, madam.”  
“Very funny, Ms. Tonks...oh...Black, Potter, Petigrew and Lupin. What are you four doing here?”  
Tonks pushed herself up a little to look at them and Remus saw the girl make out a pained face, before dropping back on to the bed.  
“Good afternoon, Madam Pomfrey…” Sirius said giving her his charmest smile “I heard my cousin had gotten herself into and accident and I wanted to check on her.”  
“Your cousin? Oh...of course, you mean Ms. Tonks. Well, Mr. Black. As you might see, she’s lying over there. She somehow managed to trip and break her hip, but it’s nothing that can’t be solved with a bone fixing potion. Unfortunately, she might have troubles walking for a few days.”  
“So it isn’t nothing grave? Someone said there was bleeding…”  
“Oh yes, she lost a bit of blood, but nothing life threatening.” Madam Pomfrey replied “You may do her company while I go for the potions; but...don’t make her move.”  
“Understood, madam.”  
Madam Pomfrey stared at the four boys sternly before leaving the room. The quartet walked closer to the bed. Since Remus was the most familiar with the girl, he was the first to greet her with a smile.   
“Oh, well. This is embarrassing. It seems that each time we bump to each other I’m in a rather disadvantageous position…” Tonks chuckled.   
The girl sure had a humor that didn’t match her age.  
“You didn’t have to fall down a hill to prove me your point about clumsiness…” Remus smiled at her “Are you okay?”  
“Splendid…” Tonks replied “I just happen to have a few broken bones, but you already knew that…”  
Remus heard Sirius bark another laugh.  
“Geez, I like her. Hey, cousin. Nice to meet you.” Sirius said coming to greet her.  
“Oooh, let me guess. Sirius Black, right?” Tonks said staring at the boy “I little bird warned me about you.”  
“Good or bad?”  
“You tell me…” Tonks replied “ I’d say 50-50. Then again, nobody is perfect. But you don’t seem to be that bad…”  
“I take that as a compliment…” Sirius smiled “ These are my friends, James and Peter and you already knew Remus.”  
“Wotcher…” Tonks smiled “Call me Tonks. I’d get up to address you properly, but well...”  
“Don’t worry about it. Why didn’t you tell Madam Pomfrey it was Boreas who pushed you down the hill?” Remus asked with a kind look.  
“Well, technically speaking. I did trip and fell downhill, so there’s no lie there. I just omitted the part where Boreas used the knockback jinx on me and made me trip…” Tonks shrugged “It’s not big deal, honestly. I did break his nose, so I think it was worth it.”  
“Yeah, we heard about that. Well, done cousin.” Sirius snorted “but mind if I ask you what triggered that?”  
“Well...since he was so interested on knowing what my mudblood father had taught me, I just thought I should show him.” Tonks replied with a smile, but Remus noticed the bitterness in her words “He can make fun of me as much as he pleases, but he shouldn’t drag my parents into it.”  
“Fair enough. That’s a low blow…” James agreed “You were brave to stand against him. I mean, he’s a second year. Not many first years would dare…”  
“Well, my dad always says...a bully is a bully, and it’s important that you stand up to them or they’ll keep getting you.”  
“Wise words…” Remus nodded “but not if they will end up putting you in the hospital.”  
“Well, to be fair. I would have ended up here eventually ...with my amazing ability to trip on my face, as you may notice....”  
Remus smiled at her.  
“ We might have to do something about that…”  
“Nah, my parent’s already tried and failed miserably. I’ll just enjoy the small bits of pampering and hope I won’t end up scared.”  
“Yeah, I think I can definitely say you’re my favorite cousin…” Sirius laughed.   
“Well, I might as well take that as a compliment, shouldn’t I?”  
Tonks pushed herself up making an obvious face of pain. Both Sirius and Remus were helped her into a sitting position; the later put the pillows behind her back in gentleman manner.  
“So...I heard Evans helped you. Guess you were lucky…” James said crossing his arms over his chest.  
“Oh, yes. I’ll have to come up with something to pay her and Snape’s kindness. Merlin knows how long it would have been before someone noticed my absence. I just got lucky he heard those green bullies and was concerned enough to go check…”  
“Snape?” Remus said surprised.  
“Wait? Snivellus?” James said wide eyed “He what? You mean he was the one who went looking for you?”  
“You look surprised…” Tonks said with a frown “Yeah, not like he’d admit it. He kept pushing the credits to Lily, but I’m good at reading people. He’s a good boy despite his looks…”  
“Are we talking about the same Snape?” Sirius seemed skeptical.  
Lily had complained to her about her cousin and his gang poor relations with Snape. Her annoyance was primary directed to Sirius and James.   
“Petigrew just follow their lead blindly; Lupin isn’t that bad, he doesn’t go against Severus, but he doesn’t stop the other two from doing it either…” she had said. “It’s simply annoying. They call themselves the Marauders, or something stupid like that…”  
Tonks could help, but feel amused at Lily’s indignation, while the real victim simply kept quiet. Snape was obviously not talker, and despite having some obvious Sytherin traits, Tonks could tell the boy was good.  
“Yup, unless he has a twin brother that I haven’t met.”  
“Two Snivellus? That’d be a nightmare…” James chuckled.  
“Why do you call him that?” Tonks asked frowning.   
“Why not?”  
“Well, it’s not nice….”  
“He’s a Slytherin, there’s nothing nice about the green snakes…” James snorted.  
Tonks glared at James. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him with irritation. The look would have been intimidating if it hadn’t been interrupted by her soft groan as the movement had sent a wave of pain up her hip. Her dad used to call it the “Black glare” and he always laughed saying that it was probably the only trait she’d inherited from her maternal family.  
“Oooh….that sent chills down my back. I could almost see my mum in that glare” Sirus said shivering.   
“You know...that’s a little prejudiced and stereotyped…” Tonks said a stern voice that made her sound older than she looked. She had completely ignored Sirius and her dark eyes were stuck on James “Not all Slytherins are bad, the same as not all Gryffindors are saints…”  
“Woah...no need to get so worked out…” Jamos said raising his arms dejectedly.  
Tonks let out an irritated sigh. Maybe it was because of her parents influence, or the way she had grown because of her little gift; but if there was something that she found stupid was prejudice.   
“My mum was a Slytherin…” she said with a frown “ Sometimes you need to look a little deeper before you judge. Not all wolves are out eat the sheep,you know?”  
The group was suddenly staring at her dumbfounded and Tonks blinked in confusion. Maybe it was her imagination, but she thought she had seen Remus pale a little.  
“What did you…?” he muttered softly.  
“Did you just said...wolves?”  
“Err...yeah?” Tonks shrugged.  
“From all animals in the world...wolves?” Sirius asked.   
“Hey...those poor things are always misunderstood…” Tonks defended poking his cousin’s chest with a finger “Always the bad guy of the story….but do you know that, among all the animals in the world, wolves are among the smartest and most loyal creatures?”  
“Ok, ok...I get that...so you’re a wolf lover…” Sirius laughed looking at Lupin with a raised eyebrow.   
“I might have a strange inclination for them…” Tonks shrugged “Dad said it was weird that I prefered a wolf plush toy instead of a doll when I was younger. Then again...I’ve never been normal to begin with…”  
The last part she muttered it softly.  
“What was that again?”  
“Nothing… so in conclusion, just because other people say something is bad, doesn’t mean it is bad. So stop using the Slytherin is bad excuse to bully and innocent boy...that doesn’t make you any better than Boreas…”  
“Auch...that was a low blow.” Sirius laughed “Fine… we’ll dislike Snape for being Snape, and not for being a Slyth.”  
“Hey, who knows maybe you’ll be up for a surprise. Maybe you’ll like him after knowing him better…”  
“THAT is not going to happen.”  
“Ok...boys always have to be stubborn…”  
“You talk like you have experience with boys…” James said curiously.   
“That’s what my mum always says. I never had much interaction with other kids…”  
“Why?” Peter asked curiously.  
“That...is a story for another day…”   
At the moment, Madam Pomfrey came into the room an handled Tonks a cup with smoking content. The potion smelled weird and tasted even worse, but the effect was instantaneous, the pain that ran down from her hip to her leg began to fade away.   
“Very well, Ms. Tonks...I do hope you won’t be rolling down hills anytime soon.” Madam Pomfrey said after checking that the bones on her hip had mended properly.  
“Ah...too bad, I think I was starting to find the fun at it…”   
Madam Pomfrey clicked my tongue in a gesture of censure.  
“No doubt you’re Ted Tonks daughter…”   
“Proudly…” Tonks grinned.  
“You’re good enough to leave, but I think it might be better for you to stay here for a couple days. Walking up stairs will still be painful...”  
“Stairs and I have always had a complicated relationship.”  
“I can imagine. Very well, you lot. Don’t stay too long…”  
With those words the healer had turned on her heels and walked back into her office.   
“A complicated relationship?” Sirius asked.  
“Call it a love triangle between the steps, me and the floor…”  
The group giggled. With all the complains that Lily had dropped on her, Tonks had been sure that Sirius and his gang were a bunch of prats, but after talking with them for a bit she realized that the boys weren’t as bad as Lily described them.   
“Ah...buggers. I didn’t get to mail my letter to my parents…” she realized.   
“Would you like me to send the owl for you?” Remus offered nicely.  
“Ah, I wouldn’t want to make you walk all the way to the Owlery to send a letter that isn’t yours…” Tonks chuckled “I appreciate the intention though. I guess I’ll do it tomorrow…”

***  
“Well….I like here. It’s nice to know that I still have some nice relatives….” Sirius said cheerfully.  
They had spent most of the afternoon in the hospital wing talking to Tonks. The girl was funny, friendly and likeable and Sirius had totally decided that she was his new favorite relative.  
“She’s sort of weird though…” James said rubbing his chin.  
“I said that since the beginning. She didn’t put down her hood during all the time we were there…” Peter said “Do you think she might have horns or snake hair?”  
“Don’t be ridiculous, Wormtail…”  
“Pushing away the hood thing though…”James said “Isn’t it weird that she kind of...likes Snivellus?”  
“Her point was valid though…” Remus said shaking her head “Perhaps...he isn’t as bad as we take him for…”  
“Moony, I think you’re just a little biased with her…” Sirius chuckled “She likes wolves, so hey...it might work. For the record...I approve the relationship...”  
“She’s 11, Sirius….”   
“So what? We’re 12, next year we’ll be 13 and she’ll be 12….no one said it had to be now.”  
Lupin rolled his eyes at his friend words. However he had a strange feeling lurking in the back of his mind. For a 11 years old girl, her thinking felt beyond her age.  
“Next time we should ask her what she thinks about werewolves….” Sirius suggested.  
“Sirius...no…”  
“Relax, you know I wouldn’t tell her; but I’m still curious what her reaction would be.”  
“Probably the same that everyone else’s…”  
“Well...one never knows. ”  
Lupin decided to ignore his friend as he made his way into the Great Hall to have dinner. The conversation was soon forgotten and replaced with more random subjects, but Lupin couldn’t brush off the strange sensation that kept naggin the back of his mind. 

***  
Saturdays were uneventful days in Hogwarts. First and second years had the day free to roam the grounds and the Castle while older students could visit the neighboring Town. Tonks had heard thousands of stories about Hogsmeade from her parents, but despite all the nice things, she found out she wasn’t that overly excited about visiting the place.  
Hogwarts was interesting enough to keep her overactive mind preoccupied after all, and after begging and promising the school’s healer that she would be wary of her steps, she was finally given the green light to leave the hospital wing.   
Madam Pomfrey hadn’t been lying when she said that her hip would bother her despite the potion. Her leg felt stiff and if she laid to much weight on to it, it hurt pretty badly, but after testing it a bit, she realized that if she kept a slow, she wouldn’t have problems to walk to the owlery.  
The day was beautifully clear and the fresh breeze was alluring as she followed stoned trail. She felt particularly lucky that she hadn’t crossed paths with any of the green bullies; she did stumble with both Lily and Snape as they were heading to the library to work on some reports that were due to next week.  
“Well, wotcher, Sade. I bet you missed me yesterday…”she said scratching the owl’s head “I hope mum and dad won’t be too annoyed for receiving a very late letter. Try to speak a little in my favor, would you?”  
The honey colored owl turned its head to her and stared her with his big green eyes.  
“Don’t look at me like that. It isn’t like I skipped on purpose.   
, I got myself caught in an unpleasant accident. Just let mum and dad know I’m all good and stopping being so nosy, you old owl...”  
Tonks knew that the bird could speak, but she had gotten used to talk to him since she was younger. Even though she wasn’t entirely sure if she understood fully, she was sure she could make out some of the things that bird tried to tell her sometimes.  
“Yeah, I’m doing okay so far. I think I might had made a couple friends. One unknown cousin among them...what is ironical in here is that none of them are in the same house as me. Well, not that it matters. My lessons with McGonagall started well...maybe I’ll be able to keep this….” she said pointing at her hood “down by the end of the term...wouldn’t that be nice?”  
The sound of a broken branch startled her and she turned right on time to come face to face with Lupin who was climbing up the stairs.   
“Wotcher…” she greeted him with wide eyes “By yourself today?”  
Lupin seemed as surprised to see her as she was. The boy stared at her with bright green eyes before smiling at her politely; a smile that evoked a strange sense of deja vu.  
“Hello, Tonks. Yes, my friends seem to enjoy the chance to sleep in on a saturday.”  
“A joy that you don’t seem to fancy, apparently. I take you’re the early bird of the quartet…”  
“More or less. You’re early for a saturday as well.”  
“Postal duties…”she chuckled in response “My parents would worry if I didn’t write as promised…”  
“I think all parents do...” Lupin nodded as he picked one brown bird and tied a rolled piece of parchment to its claw “How’s your hip?”  
“Much better… but I’m afraid I have an ugly limp. And it took me 30 minutes to reach this place…”she chuckled.   
Lupin tilted his head slightly. His green eyes staring at her thoughtfully.  
“Are you heading back to the castle?”  
“I..suppose? I thought of taking a stroll to see the views. My dad always talk about the views fondly. But knowing my luck, I might break my other leg...” she laughed.   
“It’s a nice day for a stroll...mind some company?”  
“Oh that’d be nice.”  
The pair walked out of the tower.Tonks’s steps were slow, but Lupin had adjusted his pace to follow hers, from the four boys in Sirius’s gang, it was obvious he was the one with the best manners.  
“You can see Hogsmeade from here…” he said pointing ahead of them “right over there…”  
“Looks like a cosy town….” Tonks smiled “You’ll be able to visit it next year, right?”  
“Yes. Sirius and James can’t wait to visit the shops…”  
“And you?”  
“Maybe one or two…” he smiled modestly.  
“Mmm...let me guess….a bookstore?”  
“Am I that predictable?” he smiled shyly.  
“No, no...it was a guess. You’re always carrying a book after all…”  
“You noticed?”  
“It seems that I am quite observative. My dad says it will come in handy when I decide what my career after Hogwarts will be…”  
“You also said that you could read people…”  
Tonks bit her bit distractedly.  
“Mmmm...I don’t know how I do it. My parents asked me before, but I just...know.” she replied “small things that you normally wouldn’t pay attention to...small details tell a lot, don’t you think?”  
Lupin stared at her curiously. Yesterday he had thought her thoughts were a little beyond her age, now this girl was telling him that she could analyze people by watching them? He was suddenly quite interested.  
“Would you show me?”  
“Sure, as long as you don’t mind that I use you as model since there’s nobody else around haha…”  
“I can live with that. I‘m really curious…”  
Tonks smiled at him and started cycling around him with meticulous eyes.  
“You like to read, you probably stay late reading at night under the light of your wand. Sometimes magic books, some other just fiction to kill time. You like to write notes at the margin of the books...and probably you mark the passages that you like …”  
“How did…?”  
“Your hands...they’re stained with ink. The color is quite weak, so it isn’t fresh and your book, I can see the ink lines in the margins…” she chuckled “The rest was pure guess...just to make it interesting…”  
“That’s...amazing…”  
“You think? My dad would take to the park sometimes and we’d sit down and watch the people around and try to guess their story. Dad was convinced that I was a auror on my past life haha…”  
“You’re are really fond of your parents…”  
“Who isn’t fond of his parents? Well, except Sirius. I didn’t have the chance to have many friends when I was younger, so my playmates were always mum or dad…”  
“Why?”  
“I have my reasons. If you keep being such a nice boy with me, I might consider telling you…” she answered winking at him playfully.  
“Sounds like a deal…”  
Tonks chuckled and continued walking with her small limp. Lupin walking by her side, making random comments and pointing her some of the grounds best points like a tourist guide would. Unlike James and Sirius, he was more of a shy and quiet boy, especially when it came to people from the other gender, so he found surprising, how easy he could speak to Tonks. He felt comfortable talking to her; it was a sensation of familiarity, almost as if...they’d known each other for a long time.  
“You don’t look like a trouble maker, you know? How did you end up with a bunch of pranksters?”   
“Well, we share rooms...to begin with. Bonding was just a natural thing…”  
“I guess that makes sense…” she nodded.  
“What about you? Haven’t you made friends in your house…”  
“Contrary to what many would think...it seems I am much less social than I look. They’re nice, good people I’m sure...it’s just…”   
Tonks words lingered for a bit with the incomplete idea. The girl was looking at the green fields that surrounded Hogwarts lost in thought. It was something hard to explain, but she had troubles when it came to trusting people. Her parents had said that it’d been like that since she was a baby. Tonks could be friendly and adorable, but that was all. Unless she got to know the person well enough, she wouldn’t give in completely into the interaction. Her parents had been slightly taken back by their daughter’s social abilities, but accepted it nevertheless. Her dad usually joked that at least, he could be sure that she would never run away with some useless brat when she was older. It was then that the girl realized something. She didn’t seem to have problems trusting Lupin or Sirius the day before. Their interactions had come out naturally; like old friends that had years of not seeing each other. With James and Peter, it was different, she felt awkward about the boy with glasses, and wary about the smaller one.  
“Just…?”  
Lupin’s voice dragged her out of her thoughts. The boy was staring at her carefully and she grinned at him.  
“Sorry...kind of spaced out. What was I saying…?”  
“Something about your roomates…”  
“Oh, yeah. Ehm...they’re okay. You know that tree really is the weirdest tree I’ve ever seen in my life…”  
“Ah...that’s the whomping willow. You better keep yourself away from it unless you like Madam Pomfrey’s company. It has a very bad temper...”  
“Ah...well, as friendly as she might be...I don’t think she likes me enough to see me that often; and ...I might be a klutz, but I do have a sense of survival...I’ll keep my distance.”  
“Smart…” Lupin laughed “At least you’re not like your cousin in that sense. Sirius seems to enjoy the adrenaline of putting himself in the edge…”  
“Well...as long as he doesn’t get himself killed for something stupid. Constant vigilance…”  
“Constant vigilance?”  
“Aha...I don’t know where I heard that, honestly, but you know the drill...be wary of everything, danger lurks in every corner...booooo” Tonks replied jokingly.  
“You...know….sometimes it feels like you’re not 11 years old at all…” Lupin chuckled “If Sirius had your level of thinking, he’d spent less time in detention with James…”  
“Oh, I’d get myself in detention eventually. That’s just my luck. So Mr. Tourist Guide, what else will you show me?”  
“How about the animal pen? Hagrid’s cabin is right down this way…”  
“Then lead the way. I trust you’ll make sure I won’t stumble down to a another broken hip….”  
“I think I can catch you if you fall…”  
“As long as I don’t drag you with me, of course!”

Lupin smiled at the girl as they walked down to Hagrid’s cabin. Hagrid wasn’t home, and Lupin guessed that he was probably at Hogsmeade with the older students. There would be another chance to introduce Tonks to him. The friendly creatures were kept in a small pen behind of Hagrid’s cabin; most of them were small animals like ocamies, nifflers, kneazels and puffskeins.   
“Awwwww, aren’t those incredible cute?” Tonks said grabbing the fence of the pen with glittering eyes “ Look at them! They look so furry and squishable…”

Lupin couldn’t help but laugh at the girl’s reaction. That was more like the kind of behavior he’d expect from a girl like her.   
“ Ah...adorable. I think I have a soft spot for furry animals haha…”   
“I bet you have pets at home..”  
“Unfortunately no. I wish I had though. It’d have been nice to have some company. Hey look, isn’t that your gang?”  
Lupine turned on his heels and looked toward the castle. James and Sirius walked down the path to them with laughter and jokes, while Peter followed enthusiastically.   
“Heh, seems like our tour is over…” Tonks chuckled.  
“Heeeet you two…” Sirius shouted loudly “Tonksieee….”  
“Wotcher me dear lost cousin...did you enjoy your sleep?”  
“Yeah, I was dreaming about dragons and dogs….”  
“Dragons and dogs? Well, that’s a interesting combo…”  
“Nah, it was good. What about you two, heh? Moony you should have told me you were going to meet my cous...”  
“Ah, mind you. It seems that Lupin and I had the awesome idea of sending mail at the same time today and since you, bunch of sleepy heads, were out of business and I have pretty much nothing to do, he was showing me around.”   
“Oh, that sounds like it was fun…” James said “Saw anything interesting?”  
“Uhm...well, that depends of what you consider interesting, I guess; but it was enjoyable. Thank you...now that your gang is back up, it’s my cue to leave you alone…” she added winking at Lupin “ Show me around some other time, would you?”  
“I…” Lupin began, but was interrupted by Sirius loud voice.  
“Ah, you leaving?” Sirius asked surprised.  
“Don’t leave because of us!” James added with a smile.  
“Mmmm...no at all, but I’m sure you don’t want a girl nosing around your boy adventures. See you guys around then…”  
Before any of them could say something to stop her, the girl turned around and began walking towards the castle with a small limp. The four boys were left watching her back as her image gre smaller and smaller.  
“I said...weeeeeird….” Peter groaned.  
“Ah...she’s just shy with boys, I guess…” James shrugged “It happens…”  
“She didn’t seem that shy with Moony…” Sirius pouted.  
“Don’t tell me you’re jealous, Sirius…” James laughed “ just because your cousin prefers Moony over you haha…”  
“I am no jealous!”  
“I think you are…”  
“I say I am not….!”

Lupin rolled his eyes and smiled. Sirius and James were too busy bickering with each other and Peter was watching them amused. None of them noticed that he wasn’t even paying attention to them anymore, as his glance was staring at the tiny hooded figure that walked slow but confidently to the castle.   
Maybe Tonks was weird,but he liked her weirdness.


	5. Some things are more than what meets the eye

"We do not know what things look like.   
We know what things are like. It must be a very limiting thing,this seeing.”  
— Madeleine L'Engle

Days turned to weeks, and soon into months. Tonks had already gotten used to the rhythm of a Hogwarts student and she soon discovered that she wasn’t such bad student as she had anticipated, she wasn’t the first of her year, but she was among the top ones, and that gave her a small pinch of pride.  
If only her social skill could be improved as easily. After a month living among them, she was finally comfortable enough to chat with the other Hufflepuff girls, but the interaction was still a little too cordial; something that didn’t pass unnoticed by her dear cousin.   
Tonks seemed to have a strange standards when it came to choosing her friends. She had easily accepted Sirius “family” love, and she befriended Lupin almost instantly; with James she’d been a little bit wary at the beginning, but she eventually seemed to trust the boy with glasses. With Peter, she was still a little tense, as Sirius liked to note.  
Against all odds, Tonks befriended both Lily and Snape. The first one had been more welcoming to the girl than the later. It was more than obvious that Snape would have prefered her to leave him alone.  
“Seeeeeeveeeeruuuuus….” Tonks fuzzed with a -purposely- annoying voice that made Lily giggle when the boy had glared at the younger girl horrified.  
“What?”  
“Help me with this. You are good in potions….”  
“Leave me alone…” Snape groaned “Go tell your useless cousin…”  
“Sirius sucks at potions! You said it yourself!”   
“Then Lupin. He’s the brain in there, is he not?”  
“He’s busy….” Tonks pouted “Come on Severus….heeeeelp meeeee….”  
“No…”  
“Pleaaase...please...please...please...”  
“Agh...shut up. I’m trying to focus….”  
“Come on…”  
“No…”  
“Help me Severus, you’re my only hopee….”  
Lily giggled. She was having too much fun seeing how Tonks purposely annoying Snape and how the boy pretended to be annoyed.  
“Seriously...don’t you have better things to do? Can’t you go hang out with your Hufflepuff mates or something?”  
“That’s not fun at al. I like to hang out with you and Lily…” Tonks replied winking at Lily “Pleaaase...just help me…..”  
“Agh fine...let me see that.”  
Snape took the parchment from her and his dark eyes scanned the letters on it carefully. The pale boy raced and eye-brow and shook his head irrirtated.  
“It’s three times counter clockwise, and then two clockwise before you add the convallaria leaves. Otherwise it’d turn red instead of light purple…”  
“Ah...really? Severus...you’re a genius…”  
Snape rolled his eyes and turned back to his own book.   
“I’m not a genius...it’s common sense. Use your brain…” he mumbled.  
Tonks and Lily exchanged looks and giggled.   
“Oh no...there he comes…” Lily groaned “Potter…”  
“James?” Tonks said tilting her head.  
“Yes, he’s playing clown with Black again. Annoying…”  
“They can be a little goofy at times, but they’re good. It’s like Severus, he can be a grumpy pot, but deep inside he’s just a little sweetheart…”  
“I’m not…”  
“Hahaha, she might be right on that, Severus. You’re a kind soul hiding an annoyed face...”  
“Lily, don’t …” Snape begged.  
Lily and Tonks laughed again. The hooded girl turned to where Sirius and James were busy putting up a show of paper birds that flew in circles around their heads and her gaze met Lupin's, who was looking with a mixture of amusement and disapproval at his friends. Tonks smiled and waved at him enthusiastically. Perhaps a little to enthusiastically that she accidentally knocked over a pile of books that she had by her side with a loud thud.  
“For Merlin’s sake, Nymphadora!” Snape glared at her.  
“Don’t call me Nymphadora! It’s Tonks, plain and simple Tonks!”  
“I don’t know why you don’t like your name…”Lily asked “it is such a pretty name…”  
“Lily is a pretty name, Nymphadora is just ridiculous…” Tonks said picking up the books.  
“No, it isn’t…” a new voice muttered close to her.  
To her surprise, Lupin had sneaked into the seat next to her and was smiling warmly at her.   
“Hey, Evans...Snape” he greeted the pair. Lily replied with a smile and Snape only nodded his head at him “I find your name really nice and fitting…”  
“Remus...you can’t be serious. How is Nymphadora fitting at all?”  
“Why not?”  
“First...the name is just...uff; second...it’s all...girly, lady, elegant...as far as I’m aware….I don’t have any of those attributes…”  
“You got that right…” Snape snorted.  
“So no… Tonks suits me better…”   
“If you say so…”Lily chuckled “I still think, Nymphadora is a cute name…”  
“Ah...you could be my mum’s best friend then…”Tonks said dropping her head on the table with a loud thud “Let’s not talk about my name, please.”  
“As you wish, because I’m leaving now…” Snape said snapping his book close.   
“Yes, I should go, too. I promised Mirtha that I’d help her study Charms.” Lily said.  
“Have fun with that, Lily…” Tonks smiled “Severuuuus...don’t miss me too much!”  
“Who’s going to miss you, noisy girl?!”  
Tonks broke into a laugh. She just enjoyed teasing Snape, because she knew that despite his bitter remarks and his constant glares, Snape actually accepted her and considered her his friend.  
“You know...Sirius still can’t believe you’re Snape’s friend…” Lupin chuckled.  
“Oh, he’s being silly. Guess the Black genes still get him at times…” Tonks replied turning her head to Lupin “Prejudice...I mean. Severus is a nice boy...you just need to know him.”  
“I’m not saying anything…” Lupin chuckled “I don’t have anything against him, to be honest. It seems the rivalry is between him and James…”  
“Let me guess...Lily?”   
“Too obvious?”   
“A little, but James is silly. How does he expect Lily to like him if he keeps bullying her best friend?”  
“I don’t think James thinks so much into it…”  
“Are all boys that silly?”  
“I guess we can be…”  
“Oh, not you. I’m sure you’re the exception of the rule there…”   
Lupin smiled and shook his head tiredly. Tonks raised her head from the table and looked at him with a frown. Her dark eyes staring into his green ones.  
“You’re a little pale…” she said “Are you feeling alright?”  
He wasn't’t. Full moon was in three days and he was starting to feel its effects on his body, but Tonks didn’t know it, and he didn’t want to tell her if he could help it.  
“Oh, I’m alright. I’ve been putting some overnights...that’s all…” he said rubbing the back of his head.  
Tonks stared at him for a minutes, and he could tell, by her look, that she wasn’t buying his excuse. She was too smart for her own good.  
“Hey, are you busy?”  
“Now? No, why?”  
“I need to get this back to the library. I was wondering if you’d like to come.”  
“Sure. I don’t think Sirius and James are missing me now, anyway…”  
“Nah, they’re too busy being themselves…” she laughed picking up the books.   
The pair left the hall and walked to the library engulfed in a random mudane chat. They talked about the classes, the teachers and the mischief they had done recently.Tonks loved her little chats with Lupin, because she felt so relaxed when he was close, and Lupin loved his brief minutes with Tonks, because it made him feel happy.  
Lupin helped her put back the books and eventually, they ended up in the Muggle Literature section. It was one of the less frequented sections, and so it was usually deadly empty.  
“Ah...they don’t know what they’re missing…” Tonks chuckled “Some of these are really nice…”  
“You’ve read them?”  
“My dad has them in his library. I’ve read some…”  
“Me too…”  
“Oh, you like Muggle Books?”  
“Mmmm you could say so…” Lupin answered “My mother is muggle, so we have some of these at home too…”  
“Oh, well. Look at that, something more that we have in common…” she chuckled “ Oh...Fairytales by the Grimm Brothers. My dad used to read me those when I was a kid. I could never understand why the wolf was always the bad guy…”  
“It’s not the wolf. That’s just the Muggles misinterpreting the...role of a werewolf…” Lupin replied. The last bit had come out a little bitter than he’d intended.  
“Wolves...werewolves…” she replied as if it didn’t matter, her hand caressing the books in the shelves “What’s wrong with that? Werewolves are not any less people…”  
Lupin seemed confused at her words. Had he heard correctly?  
“Werewolves are monsters….dangerous and horrible monsters…” he said automatically and he saw Tonks turn to him with an irritated frown.  
“Oh, and how would you know this? Because it is written on books? Or because that’s why everyone says?” she replied firmly “Werewolves are still people 29 days in a month, that makes them human 348 days in a year. Just because they turn into a wolf once a month doesn’t make them monsters. The person chooses whether to be good or not, that’s not different from being normal. I mean...I’m sure there are werewolves out there that are 100 times more decent people than some wizards out there…”   
Lupin was left speechless. That wasn’t what he had expected to hear about werewolves. With the exception of his friends, whenever the subject of Werewolves came into conversation, the immediate response was either fear or hate; and there he was, standing in front of an 11 years old who defended werelwolves with a reasoning that could slap at any older wizard.  
“You don’t know any werewolves, that’s what you’re saying that.”  
“And do you know any?”  
Lupin didn’t answer. He was afraid of how she’d react if he told her the truth, but Tonks took his silence as a no.  
“See? Maybe if people stopped for a bit and tried to know them, understand them, they’d see that they aren’t the demons they think they are…”  
“Werewolves are dangerous…”  
“They are, as any person is.” Tonks agreed “A werewolf might bite...yes, because he is a wolf. It’s their instinct to prey, to eat...to survive. Just like anyother animal. It isn’t a crime to act according your nature; but put it like this… If the werewolf is a good person when he or she isn’t a wolf, and then dangerous when he turns just because he follows its instinct, can you really judging him? Look at that arse of Boreas, he’s a wizard...and he hurts people just because of the fun of it. Why isn’t he judge the same way? There’s a keyword there, Remus… Choosing.”  
Lupin didn’t know what to say. Usually he could come up with any statement that would make a werewolf, make himself, look like a monster, but as he stood there watching Tonks walking between the shelves he realized that maybe, just maybe, she had a point there.  
“Ah...there it is…” Tonks voice interrupted his thoughts, as the girl pulled out a book from the shelf with a smile “I feel like reading this again…”  
Lupin glanced at the book on her hands. The cover was brown with golden letters printed on it: Whitefang by Jack London. Their talk then switched to a lighter subject as they headed back to the Hall, but Lupin was still thoughtful; the words that the young witch had told him in the library kept replaying in his mind and later that day when he’d casually commented them with his friends, their reaction had left him in shock.  
“HA, I knew she’d be a werewolf lover…” Sirius laughed “Don’t ask me how. I just did…”  
“But isn’t that good, Moony…” James said with a smile “You now know that she wouldn’t care if she knew about your furry little problem…”  
“That’s not the point…” Lupin said shaking his head “That line of thinking could get her killed. Werewolves are dangerous!”  
“And she said it. She knows they’re are, but she also knows it isn’t their fault…” James reasoned “You’re sabotaging yourself, Moony.”  
“She got mad at you for bad mouthing werewolves…” Sirius laughed “I should have seen that. If only she knew she was talking to one…”  
“But why isn’t she afraid of werewolves?” Peter asked “I mean normal people are scared…”  
“Wormtail...would you stop calling my cousin a freak, for Merlin’s sake?”  
“He’s right…” Lupin said shaking his head “ She should, and yet she isn’t. You three were scared at the beginning…”  
“Maybe her parents taught her not to be scared?” James suggested.  
“Unlikely. You know what how wizards see werewolves.”  
“Then maybe she’s reckless…” Peter suggested.  
“Or maybe...she has a brain…” Sirius said annoyed “Moony, don’t be so dramatic. This is a good thing. Means you have another friend that won’t abandon you for what you are...so I said you shut it, and enjoy it.”

Lupin knew that there was no point trying to reason with Sirius when the boy used that tone and for the first time, he thought he’d follow his friend’s advice. 

***

It was a nice night. That’s what Tonks thought when she sneaked through the main gates and walked to the school grounds. She’d always have troubles to sleep during the nights of full moon. It wasn’t that she wasn’t sleepy, but more like there was something roaming her head, a ghost worry that wouldn’t let her sleep at all. When she was younger, she would sit on her bed and stare at the moon quietly from her window; as she grew older, she realized that her sneaky night stroll helped her feel more calm.   
The night was warm, but the breeze kept her cool as she made her way to lake. The surface was calm and quiet; so stiff that the it almost looked like a black mirror. The view sent her a sense of deja vu once again. She had gotten used to them as she grew older, she’d casually get one every now and then when she was at home, but ever since she had come to Hogwarts, that sense of deja vu had become more and more common.  
“Maybe I studied here in a past life…” she giggled to herself thinking of what her dad would say if she told him.  
She had borrowed a couple books from the library out of curiosity, but after reading them through, she felt like some of the things they mentioned didn’t match her. Maybe her dad’s hypothesis about her past life was just a silly invention to make her laugh after all. She should have known better.  
Tonks strolled past the lake and made her way to Hagrid’s cabin. She knew there were Lumin fairies in the forest. Her dad told her he used to take her mum to watch them on their romantic secret dates; perhaps with some luck she would be able to see some today.   
She reached the edge of the forest in once piece. She had almost tripped with a large root that laid well hidden in the shadows. Maybe walking in the dark wasn’t the brightest idea, considering her innate gift of accidents, but she didn’t want to catch Filch’s attention by casting a light.  
“Maybe he’d think it was a will o’wisp “she chuckled “but no, the moon should be enough.”  
Tonks found a big boulder and sat on it staring into the darkness of the forest. She probably looked like a fool, but then again, nobody would see her, so who cared?  
Suddenly a soft crack made her jump and she looked into the shadows in front of her. A pair of amber eyes that seemed to glow in the dark was staring at her and she could hear a low growl. It wasn’t a threatening growl, but more like a warning growl. The kind of growl a dog would make when he wanted to be left alone. It was too dark for her too see well who the owner of the amber eyes was, and it seemed that it didn’t want to let itself be seen anyway..  
“Wotcher…” she said softly. Some people would say it was stupid to talk to an animal, but her grandmother always told her that contrary to common beliefs, animals did understand and that was why she always baby talked her scottish terrier whenever Tonks was on a visit.  
“I mean you no harm…” she said softly and the answer was once more a soft growl “I’m jus here hoping to see some Lumin Fairies. Don’t worry, I don’t intend to invade your territory…”  
Silence. It wasn’t like she had expected an answer. It was a dog for Merlin’s sake, dogs couldn’t talk!  
“I always get a insomniac on full moons. It’s silly and I just can’t explain it, but it’s like ...I’m too restless to sleep. It’s weird because I don’t even know what’s worrying me...you see? So I have the habit of taking strolls on nights of full moon…”  
There wasn’t a growl this time, and if it wasn’t for the bright golden eyes that wee staring at her, she would have thought the dog had long left.  
“You can’t sleep either?” she asked softly “Well, I wouldn’t blame you. It’s such a beautiful night. Do you live here?”  
Tonks chuckled. She really was stupid if she thought the dog would answer her.   
“Oh, yeah...silly me. It’s not like you could answer me…” she laughed “So...if it doesn’t bother you, I’d do the talking…”  
There was no growl, so she took that as a good sign.  
“My name is Nymphadora Tonks, but I prefer to be called Tonks; just Tonks. My mum, however, loves to call me Nymphadora….” she said rolling her eyes “and she says she won’t call her daughter by her last name. My dad agrees to that. He says it’d be too hard to know which Tonks you’re addressing, but my dad doesn’t call me Nymphadora. He calls me Dora, which I think is okay? It isn’t as flashy as Nymphadora. My parents are wizards. My mum was once from a.. Very important family or something like that, but she was disowned after she ran away to marry my dad. You see, my dad is a muggle born….not sure if you’ll know what that is, but the point is...my mum’s family didn’t like him. They didn’t think he was worthy enough for my mum, of course my mum thought otherwise. So my parents ran away and got married, and they had me…”  
She said the last part proudly.  
“But because of my mum’s background, I didn’t get much friends when I was younger. From one side, the ones that were on my grandparents side saw us as traitors and deserving of punishment; and the ones that weren’t...well, they were intimidated enough to not want to have anything to do with me and my family. I know what you’re thinking, if my dad was a muggle, then why I didn’t I look for friends on my muggle side? Well, I just couldn’t….”  
Tonks pulled down her hood revealing her hair. It was silvery white, waist long and straight today.   
“I’m a Metamorphmagus. I was born one...so I can change my appearance at will, like ...this…”  
She focused a little and her hair began to turn black. It looked as if someone had dropped a vial of ink over her head.  
“Dad says it is a very rare gift, unfortunately, I don’t know how to control it well, yet. So sometimes, I change by accident. You can’t do that in front of muggles! They don’t even know that magic exist! Professor McGonagall, she’s a nice lady is teaching me how to control it. It’s helping, but I still can’t control it….at least not when it comes with my hair. I think I can manage my face. That’s why I use the hoodie…” she said covering her head again “I don’t want the other kids finding out and calling me a freak along the usual blood traitor insults. I don’t mind. It’s not that it hurts me, because I know they’re wrong, but well...I just want to have some peace and quiet, if you know what I mean. THe teachers know, so they don’t mind me wearing the hood. It’s great…”  
There wasn’t a growl this time, but she saw the amber eyes going lower. The dog had decided to lay down. Well, at least it wasn’t bored about her story.  
“I haven’t made too many friends in here. I don’t know, I just feel like I can’t trust them; but not everyone. I have made some real friends too, even if there are just a small bunch. There’s my long lost cousin, his name is Sirius. He’s a dork, but I think I can accept hims as family….that’s all I need to tell you and there are his friends. James is...nice, I guess. I just think we don’t connect that well...if you know what I mean...and Remus, he’s great. I really like him, it’s like we knew each from long before we met ...it’s silly, isn’t it? And then there’s Peter...I don’t know, I don’t think we get along. I’m sure he doesn’t like me, and I am not sure how I feel about him. It’s like I have this...unreasonable sense of distrust about him…”  
The golden eyes had raised once more and Tonks could almost picture the dog’s heat tilting sideways.   
“I know it is ridiculous. He hasn’t done anything that should make me feel like that…” Tonks shrugged “ Oh there’s also Lily. I think I was a little wary at first, but she’s really nice...and she’s become a good friend and of course there’s Severus. He’s an interesting boy. He’s really kind and a big softie, but he wouldn’t admit it...he prefers to play the bad guy part before admitting that he’s done something good. For example, he always complains about me being noisy, or stupid and ridiculously clumsy, but he always helps me with homework, and seats with me on lunch and dinner, and I’m sure he worries when I trip…”   
Tonks giggled.  
“Sirius and James doesn’t like him, but well, that’s fine for Severus.He doesn’t like them either. Maybe it is because they’re to proud...if they actually tried...I believe they’d would be good friends.”  
Tonks let out a sigh and looked at the sky. The moon was high in the sky sprinkled with stars. It was a view that you wouldn’t see in the city, and she felt lucky to be seeing it now.  
“The moon is pretty, isn’t it?”  
The answer to her question was merely a soft growl. She looked back at the amber eyes and smiled at them.   
“Thank you for your company. I think I better get back, before Filch catches me. Maybe we will meet again…”  
Tonks jumped on her feet and waved at the dog one last time before walking back to the castle. The pair of golden eyes stared at her back until she was no longer seen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have this head canon in which Tonks would probably had been Snape's friend if they had actually studied at the same time. She's the kind of person who wouldn't let herself be mislead by appearances and she would probably be all clingy on him just to annoy him. Eventually he'd end up getting used to her and they'd become good buddies even when he denays it.


	6. Bad news come and go

“There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me.”   
― Jane Austen

 

“Hey...you’re back, Moony.” Sirius said when Lupin dragged himself back into the bedroom later that day.   
After his transformation,he had gone to the hospital wing to receive his regular check up with Madam Pomfrey. The woman had healed the most of his injuries and sent him straight back to bed. Lupin didn’t complain, for starters he was exhausted and in pain; and, on the other hand, he wanted some peace and quiet to reflect on what had happened last night.  
Werewolf metamorphosis was a complex process, not only physically but mentally. When he turned to his wolf’s form, his mind became wild and more animal like, but he still retained some sense of human conscience. It was like being present, but unable to do anything. Actions were dominated by the wolf’s side.  
The wolf had gone hunting last night. It never left the safety of the forest of course, but he had strolled at the very edge of it. When he saw the girl sitting at the edge of the forest, Lupin had sensed the mix of fear, curiosity and distrust in the wolf. His human side, however, was horrified as he saw Tonks sitting there so innocently and defenceless. What if the wolf decided to attack her?

To his surprise, it didn’t. The wolf had sneezed the air and caught on the girl’s scent. There was something oddly familiar about it, and instead of attacking, it had sat there watching here. 

“Moony, you look beaten…” James said popping out from his bed “but you don’t look as bad as you usually do, so I suppose last night wasn’t that bad…”  
“No, it wasn’t…”   
Lupin hesitated. Did he want to share about his unexpected encounter with a certain girl? After pondering for a couple minutes, he decided that he didn’t want to tell them...yet. Telling them would also mean he had to speak of what she’d told him, too.  
“What did you do last night?” Peter asked.  
“I went hunting in the forest…” Lupin shrugged sitting in his own bed.  
“Oh, guess that’s good.” Sirius nodded “Guess who was asking around about you?”  
“Ehr...who?”  
“Tonks of course!” James laughed “We saw her this morning after she comically tripped with one of the armors. Seriously, that girl can stay on her two feet…”  
“She said you were looking quite ill the past days and wanted to know if you were feeling okay.” Sirius explained “Don’t worry. We told her you had caught a cold, but she seemed pretty concerned. Check on her when you get the chance would you?”  
“Sure…”  
As matter of fact, if his muscles weren’t hurting as much as they were now, he’d have gone right away.   
“Boreas has picked up the bullying again…” James said “Seems like he got over his broken nose and he’s back on harassing her. We were trying to come up with a plan to help…”  
“No, Slytherin arse is going to bully my cousin…” Sirius nodded.  
“They’re harassing her again? What did they said?” Lupin said in a rush, remembering what the girl had told the wolf last night.   
“The usual thing…” James replied shaking his head “Her parents, they keep calling half-blood scum and well...other than Slytherins, some people have been talking about her not putting of her hood. I heard Evans scolding some girls in the common room because they were saying that she probably had something weird in her head…”  
“There’s nothing weird with her hair…” Lupin said automatically.  
“Well, unfortunately...we don’t know.” James shrugged “And well...unless she takes off that hood, people will keep talking…”  
“Don’t worry about it, Moony. You need to rest, so ….James and I will handle it.”  
Lupin had no doubt that they would, but he made a mental note to talk with her soon.

Unfortunately, he didn’t get the chance to talk to Tonks until the end of the week, when he stumbled with her as he came out from Charms. The girl was running down the hall and in the middle of her hurry she had crashed into him and company when they’ve been leaving the classroom. Even without the look on the black and yellow hood or the soft groan, Lupin could have recognized her in a blink.   
“Hey, careful! ” he said catching he arm and steadying her before she could hit the floor.  
“Oh!”  
There’s was something off in her voice. It wasn’t as energetic as usual.  
“Wotcher, Remus! ”she smiled faintly and he could tell something wasn’t right “My hero as usual, aren’t you? How are you feeling?”  
“I...I’m good. Why do you ask?”  
“Well, Sirius said you were sick…”  
“Oh...that. I’m good. It wasn’t serious….”  
“Oh that’s good, then...”  
“Tonksie!” Sirius said cheerfully.  
“Wotcher, Sirius, James...Peter....”  
“Heading to lunch? How about you eat with us, cousin?”  
“Mmm...am I even allowed to sit at your table?”  
“Of course you are. There’s no rule against mixed lunch seat and we are not slyths…”  
“Oh, you’re right…”  
“Are you alright?”  
“Me? Yeah, why wouldn’t it?” she replied. Her answer had come a little too fast, and Lupin frowned.   
“Have to agree with Remus, kid. You’re a little pale…” James said looking at her “Did you catch a cold?”  
“A what? Ah, no...ehm, just...busy with work and stuff and….”  
“Hey half-blood scum. Heard about that event, have you not? I’d say they had it coming….”  
Tonks tensed and the color drained from her face. She cast a bitter glare at Boreas and his gang; but her glare was watered down by the glow in her eyes. She looked like she was about to cry.  
“Shut up!” she shouted.  
“Or what?”  
“Boreas, shut up, you arse…” Sirius growled pushing Tonks behind protectively.  
“Tch...Blood traitors stand for each other, don’t they? Maybe next time it’d be your turn, Black... ”  
“My turn?”  
“Oh, haven’t you heard the news? That wizard that killed all those muggles...it was all in the papers. The pathetic couple stood no chance. Can you imagine that, half-blood scum? How much they must have screamed as they were cursed….”  
“Boreas!”  
Boreas laughed loudly, but his laughter was interrupted when Tonks, with a skill that seemed rehearsed for years, pulled her wand out from her robes and chanted firm and clearly.  
“Stupefy!”  
Red sparkles flew at Boreas face and the boy landed flat on his back. The corridor was speechless staring at the scene. No one dared to move. Tonks face was bitter, the tears had began to slide down her cheeks and both Lupin and Sirius had moved to her side unconsciously.  
“MS.TONKS…”  
McGonagall’s strong voice cut through the hallway. Her face was pale and her lips were stretched into a thin line. She was furious, anyone could tell that.  
“Professor!” On of Boreas lackeys cried overdramatically “She attacked us! We were just chatting and she attacked us out sudden…”  
“You git…”Sirius began but was interrupted by McGonagall.  
“Yaxley, I don’t need to hear your excuses. I witnessed the events pretty well…” she replied. Her look stuck on Tonks “Ms. Tonks...I’ll need you to come with me…”  
“But professor…!” Sirius began.  
“Enough Black, go to your next class…”  
“They provoked her!” James tried to push in.  
“Potter… It isn’t your business…”  
“But professor.”  
“Lupin, I think I made myself clear…”  
Before any of them could say anything. McGonagall took Tonks hand in a gentle yet stern grip and walked away with her.  
The three boys stared at each other restless. None of them knew what had just happened.

 

***

Tonks walked silently behind McGonagall. She hated crying. It made her look childish and weak, but she found that as much as she tried, her tears kept running down her cheeks. She’d lost her temper at Boreas words, but she felt no regrets.   
She had received the owl early that morning. An urgent letter from her parents. The ink had been blurred as if the person writing it had been crying endlessly. Two nights ago, a wizard had broken into her grandparents house and had killed them in cold blood. Her mother had spared her the details, after all, she was just a child and she didn’t need to know the gruesome details of the crime. Tonks, however, was a smart girl and all she needed to do was look into the news papers to get the information that her parents had tried to keep from her.   
Her grandparents had been killed by a wizard who’s identity remained unknown, but he was a supporter of Pure Blood Supremacy. Her grandparents had been tortured to death and it was her own father who had found them. It had been a warning. It was clear by the message written in magical words: Blood-Traitors and Mudblood shall be purged.  
She had tried her best to keep her cool, and she had succeded so far until Boreas had said those words.

Can you imagine that, half-blood scum? How much they must have screamed as they were cursed….

Her wand was in her hand automatically and she couldn’t even remember mouthing the spell. She didn’t know it, she’d never learned it, even less, used it before.  
McGonagall took her to her office and closed the door quietly. Tonks stood there silently. She knew she was about to get punished, in the worse case scenario she’d get expelled, in the best, she’d earn detention for the rest of the year.  
Needless to say, when McGonagall kneeled down in front of her and pulled her into a hug, the girl was speechless.  
“I’m so sorry about your grandparents, Tonks…” she muttered patting her back.  
And the girl broke. She started sobbing as the child she was supposed to be. All her attempts to appear cool and collected shattered into pieces.She didn’t want to be there, now. She wanted to be home, with her parents...she wanted to see her grandparents. She felt to helpless.  
McGonagall patted her comfortingly. She wasn’t the girl’s head of house, but she had come to like the girl after expending so many private tutorings for her Metamorphmagus lessons. McGonagall had been patrolling the corridors when she heard the fuss and she had made it on time to hear Boreas mock Tonks about her grandparents deaths. She couldn’t blame the child for stunning the older kid.  
“I’m so sorry...I’m so sorry…” Tonks sobbed “I didn’t meant to hex him...but...but…”  
“I know...I know....” McGonagall said soothingly “it’d be alright...I saw. I will speak to Horace about what happened…”  
“I couldn’t say good-bye…” Tonks mumbled “I promised Nana I’d visit her for christmas. She said she’d knit me a new jumper...”  
McGonagall was wordless. She could only rub the girl’s back trying to comfort her as best as she could, knowing that there was little she could do. She was too young to deal with such tragic deaths.  
“Would you rather go home? I’m sure we can speak to Professor Dumbledore, and he’d let you go home for a while…”

Tonks didn’t answer, but she nodded between her sobs. She wanted to go home. As she sat there in McGonagall’s office crying helplessly a tiny voice whispered inside of her mind.

For each change that is made, and equal price must be paid. 

***

Sirius stomped angrily to the table. He’s young face was filled with bitterness and anger, making Peter shrink when the boy snapped at him for asking what was wrong.  
“Look at this…”  
Sirius threw a copy of the Daily Prophet on the table. Lupin picked it up and his eyes went wide as he read the article.  
“Dorotea and Jacob Tonks….?” James said reading from over his shoulder “Are they…?”  
“Tonks grandparents…” Sirius said grumpily.  
“Blimey….”James said wide eyed “And Boreas was...rubbing it on her face. Not surprise she threw a hex at him…”  
“Charm…” Lupin corrected “It was a stunning charm. I don’t know how she knew how to cast it. We don’t see those until fourth year…”  
“Maybe she read it somewhere and she just….randomly used it.” James shrugged.  
“Who cares…” Sirius said in annoyance “I’m more concerned about my cousin. What if she gets expelled for it?”  
“You think McGonagall would expel her after...well, that…?” James said looking at the newspaper.  
“Who knows…”  
“Maybe we should go see her…” Lupin suggested. He didn’t think McGonagall would expel her, but he was concerned about the girl’s emotional state at the moment.   
The four Gryffindor boys rushed to McGonagall’s office. To their surprise, they weren’t the only ones there as they almost stumbled with a ginger headed girl and a pale black haired boy.  
“Snivellus?” Sirius said dumbfounded.  
“Evans!” James said in surprised.   
Lily rolled her eyes ignoring both of them. The girl was obviously worried and Lupin had to admit that Snape looked concerned as well. Perhaps Tonks was right, and despite Snape negations, he considered the Hufflepuff girl a friend.   
“Is she still inside?” he asked Snape. The boy seemed surprised that Lupin was addressing directly at him.  
“What?”  
“ Tonks. That’s why you are here, no?” Lupin said standing in front of the door “You must have heard of what happened in the Slytherin common room…”  
“...It was Lily’s…”  
Lupin could almost hear Tonks voice chiming in his ear.   
There he goes...pushing the credit to someone else...that’s Severus.   
Snape let out an irritated sigh and Lupin smiled faintly. He had to admit that perhaps the girl was right, and Snape wasn’t as bad as Sirius and James liked to put him.   
“They haven’t come out…” he whispered softly “I heard Boreas and some other students talk about some muggles being tortured with the Cruciatus curse and ... When I heard they were name Tonks. ”  
“You tied the knots…” Lupin nodded. He wished he’d had known earlier. He couldn’t imagine how the girl was feeling.  
“Boreas got her before I did…” Snape muttered “It’s not like I care about her, but making fun of the dead...is not right…”  
Lupin nodded. Maybe it was because Tonks had said it before, but suddenly he could see all those little things that betrayed Snape’s intention to appear indifferent. They talk was interrupted by McGonagall’s door opening.  
“Professor!” Lily said in a rush.  
McGonagall was visibly surprised by the small crowd in front of her door.  
“Evans, Snape, Lupin, Black, Potter and Pettigrew. What are you doing here?”  
“Professor...it wasn’t Tonks fault, Boreas…” Sirius began, but McGonagall stopped him.  
“I know. I already spoke to Professor Slughorn about it. He isn’t too happy with how his students were using such....lamentable news. Especially to someone who was involved directly to the victims. ”  
A wave of relief spread between the them. That was a good sign, at least it meant that Tonks wouldn’t be expelled for stunning Boreas.  
“Is...Tonks alright?” Lupin asked and for a second he thought he had seen sadness in the stern professor’s face.  
“I won’t lie to you. Ms. Tonks isn’t feeling too well right now…”  
“Can we see her? I mean...our company could help, right?” Sirius said.  
“I’m afraid no, Mr. Black. Professor Dumbledore agreed that, under the current circumstances, it was better for Ms. Tonks to be with her family. She was sent home…”  
“She’s not here?” Lily asked “When will she come back?”  
“Ms. Evans, I’m afraid that it is hard to say. It is a difficult moment for her and her family. They’ll need time to ...recover.”  
Tonks had to be worse than they had imagined. It was difficult to imagine such a cheerful girl mourning after all.   
“But...professor...about Boreas…”  
“Like I said, Black. We will handle that. Tonks won’t be punished for what happened today. There’s no need to put her under more anxiety.”  
They had known McGonagall was right, and in the current circumstances there was no better place for her but her own home with her family. At least, there wouldn’t Slytherin ready to add salt to her injury there.  
Lupin was aware of this, and even when he knew that it was the most reasonable solution, he couldn’t help but wish she was here. Tonks absence was noticed by many and, unfortunately, not all those who noticed were friendly eyes. Rumors had begun to spread among the hallways of the school. From her being expelled for almost “killing” a student to her being sent to Azkaban and other ridiculous things that made Lupin want to hex the whole student body; something that -as James had noted- was absolutely rare on him.   
Sirius, too, had been in a foul mood ever since the incident with Boreas; and he made it his life goal to make the Slytherin pay. Thanks to Lily and, to both Sirius and James surprise, Snape’s efforts, the rumors slowly died away.   
Days passed, and the night of the full moon arrived. Lupin sat quietly in Shrieking Shack awaiting the time for his transformation. It wasn’t nice; it never was and it didn’t matter how many times he went through it, he’d never get used to it. The burning sensation tearing through his muscles and skin; the piercing sting in his bones as the stretched and twisted into their animal forms. Ususally, he’d lose all his human consciousness once he’d changed, but that night something odd had happened. His human mind was conscious along the animal’s.Not fully there, but there.  
The wolf sneaked out of the dilapidated house and made his way into the forest. He smelled the air and a wave of different essences invaded his nostrils: grass, soil, deer, hare...familiar scents of the wild, but there was another scent hiding under all those. A scent that was alien, yet..familiar.   
The wolf followed the scent through the forest until it reached the end of it. He could see the castle at the distance and the wolf realized that he’d reached the school grounds. Why had the scent brought him there? His ears caught the sound of footsteps and out of sudden, a dark hooded figure sat down a few steps from him. His first reaction was to get defensive.  
The wolf bared its teeth and growled in warning; he was ready to jump at the new comer anytime, but then he caught the scent. That strange fragrance that felt so familiar and...attracting.  
“Is that you?” a soft voice asked in a whisper.  
The wolf didn’t recognize it immediately. She couldn’t see him as long as he stayed in the shadows casted by the forest trees, but he could see her perfectly well under the moonlight. It was the same girl he’d met some time ago, in this same place. However, the wolf noticed something different about her.   
The first time they had met, she was full of life and energy. At the time he’d been tempted to jump at her and attack, but he found himself unable to do it. Attacking her felt wrong. Almost as if he was attacking his mate. So he had stayed down and watched her suspiciously.   
Tonight, however, she seemed...tired...weak; perhaps even ill and he felt tempted to jump out, not to attack her, but to look at her to be sure she was alright.  
“Wotcher…” she said softly. She had noticed him “I was wondering if I’d see you, today.”  
The wolf was surprised. The girl didn’t seem afraid of him, but then again, she couldn’t see him, could she?  
“ I’ve just arrived. I was away for a while, you know? Well, that’s a stupid question. Of course you wouldn’t know...”  
The wolf watched her quietly; she was right. He wouldn’t know, but his human counterpart did and he’d been awfully concerned about her absence.  
“It’s been some tough days, would you mind listening to me? It’s not like I have anyone I can talk to about this.” she said tiredly. There was no way for the wolf to answer and, even though he thought that he couldn’t care less about human matters, he found himself unable to leave. He wasn’t sure whether it was his human side’s influence, or the strange sense of attachment that this girl gave him.  
Taking the wolf’s silence as a agreement, the girl moved from the stone and sat down over the grass with her legs crossed.  
“My grandparents are gone.” she said in a soft whisper. Her voice was firm, but the wold could see the glitter in her watery eyes “ It was...a murder. My parents tried to spare me the details, of course. I know they think I’m too young to understand, but I’m not that naive. My grandparents were mug...normal people. You know, no magic? They knew about me of course. They were the only ones in my dad’s family that knew, and my Nana loved to see me change the color of my hair…”  
Tonks had stared at her hands and took a deep breath before continuing to speak.  
“It was a wizard…” she said weakly “Who did it, I mean. I heard dad telling mom he’d been imperiused. I’m not sure what that is, but it sounded bad. My grandparents...suffered a lot. The man from the ministry, he was kind of scary with that magical eye. He said they had been tortured. Mum thinks it was her family...she feels guilty. Dad told her it wasn’t her fault and if there was someone to blame, that was him. The only reason her family was after us, is him…”  
The wolf had raised his head. It was difficult for him to understand it, but he’d sensed a switch in the air. It was faint, but his sensitive nose could feel it. Animal’s scent could change depending on their feelings; he’d smelled the scent of fear when he hunted; even the scent of urgency. THe scent he was sensing now, however, was one he wasn’t used to: Grief.  
“ Mum is a pure blood and my dad is from a non magical family so them being together is a crime.My parents love each other. Isn’t love supposed to be a good thing? It’s….it’s….it’s not fair…”  
Tonks had begun sobbing, and the wolf felt something it wasn’t used to: empathy. Without even realizing it, he had stepped out from the shadows. He was still young, so compared to an adult of his kind, he was pretty small, but his coat was of a silvery gray that almost seemed to glow under the soft touch of the sunlight.  
The wolf approached the girl cautiously and sat down in front of her. Tonks raised her face and her puffy eyes locked with his amber ones. He was surprised that the girl didn’t seem to flinch at his presence. He had crossed paths with people before, and they have all either tried to hurt him or ran off terrified. This girl, however, wasn’t. She didn’t want to hurt him and she wasn’t scared of him.  
“You...are not a dog…” she said a little shocked. The wolf tilted his head at her “Oh, no. I’m so sorry Mr. Wolfie….all this time I thought you were a dog. I didn’t offend you, did I?”  
If wolves could frown, he would have done it already. From all the reactions he’d expected, an apology was definitely not in the list.  
The girl stretched her hands at him. She wasn’t stupid, and she knew that trying to pet a wild animal wasn’t smart, but there was something about the wolf that was familiar; something that made her feel safe.  
The wolf had tensed when he saw the girl’s hand getting close to him. His natural instinct told him to growl and show her his fangs, but something was preventing him from doing it; something that he didn’t understand told him that he couldn’t hurt that girl.  
Tonks fingers brushed the wolf’s fur gently, and he relaxed letting her pet him. The girl’s tear had stopped falling down her cheeks and a faint smile curved her lips. She realized that the wolf had let her see and pet him as a gesture of comfort. Her grandmother had been right, animals sometimes understood better than people.   
“Thank you…” she whispered resting her head against his back and the wolf decided that, even if he shouldn’t trust humans, he knew he could, at least, trust this girl.

***  
Lupin woke up in the Shrieking Shack the next morning feeling a little airheaded. As his mind grew more awake and alert, a sense of horror invaded him. He could remember small bits of the events from last night and a terrible fear filled him.   
His fear was even enlarged by the lingering familiar scent on him. He had approached Tonks in his wolf’s form. Had he bitten her? Had he hurt her? His, still over sensitive sense of smell, didn’t catch any trace of blood on his body, but he was still restless. The boy got dressed and ignoring the pain in his body he made his way back to Hogwarts.   
Under normal circumstances he’d have headed straight to the hospital wing to receive his after moon treatment, but he had to make sure he hadn’t hurt Tonks. One of the advantages (or disadvantages depending on the situation) of his transformation was that he’d retain his wolf’s senses the following 24h. He was able to track down Tonks lingering scent.He could tell she was somewhere in the school grounds and he didn’t need his wolf senses to know where.

Tonks was fast asleep when he found her. She was curled in a corner of the owlery with her head resting against the wall. The girl had probably spent the night in the tower. It wasn’t autumn yet, but nights could still get chilly and she was only wearing her school robes.  
Lupin knelt in front of her and scanned her carefully. To his relief, the girl did not seem to show any indication of being hurt, but she was a little too cold to the touch.  
“Tonks…” he said shaking her gently “Tonks...wake up…”  
It took Lupin a few minutes to wake her up, and he found himself smiling unconsciously when the girl groaned. She opened her sleepy eyes and looked around slightly confused.  
“Remus?”  
“Good morning…” he said softly as the girl rubbed her eyes.  
“...Wotcher..” she said pushing herself into a sitting position and stretching her arms “What are you doing here?”  
“I should be asking you that…” he replied “ Shouldn’t you be sleeping in your bed?”  
“My…?”  
Tonks looked around and her eyes widened in surprise when she noticed her surroundings. After a few seconds of memory work she seemed to remember why and how she had gotten there and Lupin saw her blush in embarrassment.  
“I fell asleep…” she mumbled “Oh, Merlin…”  
“ I could tell that...but why are you sleeping in the owlery…?” he chuckled.  
“Eh...I came back last night. I couldn’t sleep and decided to go out for a stroll...I guess I just fell asleep here…” she looked around her “Did you …?”  
“Did I…?”  
“There was a...dog,well, no a dog, a wolf…” Tonks looked around as if she was wondering whether she had imagined all of it “You know what,...forget it…”  
Lupin was frozen for a minute. Had he stayed with her the last night? He couldn’t remember well. When he transformed, his memories were blurry and scattered, so he couldn’t quite remember all the things he did when he wasn’t human.  
“Uh….don’t worry. It was nothing…” she smiled and then she frowned in concern “Remus... what happened to you?”  
“To me?”   
Then he remembered. In the middle of his worry about Tonks, he had forgotten. He was probably covered in scratches and injuries that Madam Pomfrey had yet to heal.  
“I…” he said trying to come up with a believable excuse.  
“Oh, dear... I passed you the clumsiness curse, didn’t I?” Tonks said slightly concerned “Oh Merlin....”  
“It’s nothing, Tonks...just a few scratches. I’m fine…”   
“Oh, you’re not fine Remus, and let me tell you...I know about injuries…” the girl replied standing up clumsily and scanning the boy with worry “We should go to madam Pomfrey…”  
Tonks began pushing him out of the owlery with hurry. Lupin knew the girl’s concern was real, but he couldn’t help but find her actions a little amusing. Unfortunately, Tonks’s good intentions were beaten by her innate clumsiness when she tripped at the exit of the tower and dragged Lupin along with her to the ground.  
The boy let out a groan as he crashed against the ground. His strained muscles complained at the impact and he had to bite his lip to not let out a screech.  
“Oh, buggers! I’m so sorry, Remus! Are you okay?But what am I saying...of course you’re not. Okay...stupid me… eh, where does it hurt?”  
If Lupin was honest, everywhere; but it wasn’t her fault; and despite feeling horribly in pain, he let out a heartwarming laugh.  
“Oh, no...oh, no, no. Did you hit your head? Remus? How many fingers am I holding...I don’t know if that even works, but I’ve seen people ask that in the movies…”  
“Tonks…” Lupin chuckled pushing himself up “I’m alright...don’t worry.”  
“Are you sure?”  
“Yes, but...I’d appreciate some help getting...well, up…”  
“Ah...of course.”  
Tonks helped Lupin back on his feet; then, she pulled his arm over her shoulders to allow him to lean on her as they made their way back to the castle.  
“Weird...I could have sworn you were shorter…”Lupin said with a smirk.  
Lupin had done his homework after Tonks had told his wolf side that she was a Metamorphmagus. There wasn’t much information about them in the library’s books because Metamorphmagus were very rare, and the knowledge about them was scarce. All he’d been able to find out was that the gift of metamorphmagic was unique and some considered it genetically encoded and that they were capable to change their appearance at will and for extended periods of time.   
“What?” Tonks said innocently. He didn’t have to know that she had morphed herself a few inches taller to make it easier for him to relay on her.   
“Nothing, I must have hit my head and now I’m imagining things…”he mumbled casually.  
Madam Pomfrey wasn’t too happy when Tonks came into the hospital wing with a very hurt Lupin and she pushed the younger student out of the room as she handled the Gryffindor’s many injuries. That left a guilty looking Tonks pacing around the nurse’s office like a caged lion until the nurse came back with a freshly healed Lupin.  
“Now, Ms. Tonks…” Madam Pomfrey said sternly “I’ve healed Mr. Lupin’s injuries, but he needs rest, so…”  
“I know...I know. I won’t bother him...I promise.” Tonks quickly added “I’ll accompany him to back to Gryffindor’s Tower and he’ll be free of me for the rest of the day…”  
Madam Pomfrey stared at the girl with a frown that made Lupin chuckle. Every little detail of her posture was giving away a very clear message and he was fighting a very silly urge to laugh. At the end, the nurse had reluctantly allowed them to leave.  
“Oh, dear Merlin…” Tonks sighed “Is there any chance, Madam Pomfrey hates me?”  
“I highly doubt it…” Lupin answered “She’s probably in a bad mood. I’m under the impression that she gets like that when she’s concerned about the well being of her patients…”  
“Ah...then she totally hates me.” Tonks nodded to herself “I’m so sorry, Remus...I didn’t meant to ...well, make it worse…”  
“You didn’t make it worse, Tonks.”   
He wasn’t lying. The pain he was feeling was due to the full moon and compared to that, a small lump in his head was nothing.  
“Still...aggh. My lack of grace will be my doom one day. I’m sorry...”  
“Hey, I said it was fine. Really...”  
It was clear that Tonks wasn’t convinced, but she didn’t push the mater. Lupin stared at the girl as they walked . She wasn’t looking as bright as she usually was and even though she was trying to act like she usually did, he could tell that her cheerness wasn’t completely honest.  
“ Ehm...this might be a little improper, but...How...How are you?” he said hesitantly.  
Lupin wasn’t entirely sure if it’d be okay to ask her. He and Sirius had sent her a few owls during her absence. Owls that were never answered; but neither of them had blamed or resented her for it. Like James had said, she was either too busy with all of it or simply too mournful to write back.   
Tonks seemed to have froze on her feet.   
“I…” she began.   
She hesitated. Tonks turned to face Lupin and saw his gentle eyes staring at her with worry. Worry, not pity, she noticed. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out from it.  
“Oh, well...hey, it’s okay. I’m just...concerned, but you don’t need to talk if you don’t want to. I know it’s hard…” he said rubbing the back of his neck.   
And then she broke. The mask of cheerness faded and Lupin watched in horror how the girl’s eyes became teary and red. Tonks let out a frustrated mix between a growl and a sob and rushed to clean up her tears with the sleeve of her robe in the most dignifying way she could. She didn’t want to be seen crying like a fool. She had momentarily forgotten her grandparents death with all the disastrous events with Lupin, but now, the weight of reality had fallen on her shoulders once more and for some annoying reason she couldn’t stop herself from weeping.  
Lupin was panicking. He wasn’t good at this kind of things; dealing with girls was more Sirius’s area. In other circumstances, the panic in his- usually calm face - would have been amusing.   
“S-s-sorry. It’s my fault. I don’t know...my emotional switch must be broken or something...haha…” she said rubbing her face “I don’t even know why am I crying...haha…”  
“...Tonks…”  
“Maybe I should go.You can….get to Gryffindor on your own, right?”  
“Tonks….”  
“I’ll just...go and…”  
“Nymphadora!”  
Lupin felt a little self conscious about using her name, but at least he had gotten her attention. He was glad that rather than angry, she seemed surprised by him using her name.  
“Don’t…” she began, but Lupin waved his hand in front of hair.  
“I know...but you weren’t listening.” he said “look. I understand...what happened was terrible. There’s nothing wrong if you want to cry. I’d never judge you, none of us would. We are your friends. We want to...help. That’s what friends do. Support each other…”  
He remembered that some time ago he had gotten that same speech from James and Sirius, and the memory made him smile. He’d never imagined himself giving it to someone else.   
Tonks stared at him quietly. There was something about Lupin’s voice that could make her feel calm, but she had no idea what it was. She cleaned up her face as best as she could and nodded.   
Lupin suddenly sensed someone approaching. It was probably some students ready to go for breakfast and the last thing Tonks needed was a bunch of students gossiping about her in her face; so he grabbed her hand and dragged her all the way out of the castle again.   
“Wait...what...?” Tonks asked surprised “Remus!”  
Lupin didn’t answer until he considered that they were far enough to not be seen by any other students.   
“Sorry, there was someone coming. I thought they’d make you feel uncomfortable with...you know…” he said embarrassed.  
There was silent pause between them. Out of sudden, Tonks broke into a soft and weak giggle. The girl understood Lupin’s intention. She’d left the school in a pretty flashy way, and by now everyone would have heard about her grandparents. Rumors and gossips were bound to appear, and Lupin had wanted to spare her the weight of the other students’ curious looks until she felt a little better to deal with them.  
“Thank you…”  
“Erm...it’s nothing…” he said with a smile “say….How about we... skip class today? We can take a stroll, or just sit around and talk. That should make you feel better...”  
“Madam Pomfrey said you had to rest…”  
“Yeah. She didn’t say I had to do it in my bed, did she? It’s fine...I can get excused from class for being a little ill and I’m sure no one will say anything if you skip today….”  
Tonks seemed to consider it.   
“WHere do you suggest we hide?”  
Lupin smiled.  
“Just follow me…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ohhh...I love the little interactions between young Tonks and Remus. It's so adorable haha...I really don't know how my highschool mind came up with these Ideas but I'm enjoying my revisit. I hope you are enjoying them as well.


	7. What you want, what you fear

"Most people are always doubtful as to whether they are happy or not, cheerful or not. This is the normal state of happiness, as doubt is a most natural thing."   
— Yukio Mishima 

 

Tonks return was accompanied- as expected - by endless gossips and whispers that the girl, very maturely, had chosen to ignore. Boreas and his gang had tried to harassed her again, but their attempts were either stopped by a teacher or by Sirius and James’s mischieves and she was more than grateful for it. Even though she knew Boreas was a git and that she should know better than to hear what he had to say, it didn't make his remarks about her grandparents' death sting any less.  
The Hufflepuff girl started avoiding the Great Hall and her Common room as much as she could, so most of her free time was spent in the library with Lily or Snape who-surprisingly - had kindly offered to help her catch up with the potions lessons she had missed; or in the owlery with Lupin who would either help her study or distract her with some friendly chat. Sometimes they enjoyed of the occasional company of Sirius, James and Peter. As day went by, the girl noticed that the veil of grief was slowly lifting and little by little, Tonks returned to her old cheerful self and things went back to how they used to be. Well, at least most of them. Tonks seemed to have caused an impact on certain Hogwarts students after all.  
The first one was Snape. The Slytherin potions prodigy was as irritable as always, but Tonks constant insistence to befriend him seemed to be paying off. The boy was less bitter and slightly more talkative; and, in very rare occasions, he’d even smile. When it come to his rivalry with James and Sirius, the three boys seemed to have reached some sort of truce. After an impressive and a little scary scold from Tonks, James and Sirius had stopped picking on Snape and Snape had stopped being rude to them. Their friendship was complicated, but it was there and that seemed to satisfy Tonks. Peter wasn’t much of an active speaker and he limited himself to follow anything that James and Sirius decided to do. Among the four Gryffindors, the one who seemed to have the best accord with the Slytherin, was Lupin. Perhaps it was his good nature or the fact that Tonks influence had already biased his image of Snape, but in many occasions he found himself having very enriching conversations with the black haired boy.  
As their relationship with Snape improved, the second change came up with Lily. The girl was elated about Snape having more friends and as result her, usual cold treatment to James and Sirius, was lifted - much to Jame’s pleasure.   
After a few weeks, the picture of five Gryffindors, a Slytherin and  
a first year Hufflepuff hanging around Hogwarts during free periods became a common sight. The months passed and the season began to change as autumn reached it peak. There was a little secret that Lupin hadn’t revealed to any of his friends yet. Each full moon, his wolf counterpart would sit under the moon listening to a cheerful Hufflepuff girl relate the stories of her friends’ adventures.   
Lupin felt a little guilty about keeping it secret. Especially when there was his fear that one day the wolf would be in bad mood and would try to bite Tonks, but as one full moon passed after another, he realized something that’d left him speechless. His wolf counterpart liked Tonks.   
He couldn’t comprehend those animal’s feelings, but he could tell that the wolf saw Tonks in a particular way. It didn’t consider her a threat, in the contrary, it seemed to enjoy the girl’s company. It was sort of possessive and protective of her to the extreme in which the wolf was willing to kill anything or anyone that could impose a danger for her.   
It was something he’d never heard about, and even after digging into all the books about werewolves available in the library, he’d come out without answers. No one had ever seen a case in which a werewolf would feel the urge to attack. Werewolves obeyed instinct and their human mind was completely disconnected from their actions after the transformation. Then why did the wolf seemed to retain Lupin’s sympathy for the Hufflepuff girl?  
“Wotcher, Remus!”  
Lupin had been too lost in his thoughts to notice the girl’s arrival. He was sitting at the edge of the window in the owlery with a book open on his lap. Sirius and James had probably gotten themselves into detention after setting a up Boreas’s cauldron during potions causing it to explode and Peter had been sprayed all over with the cauldron’s content, so he had ended up in the hospital wing. Being the only one with free time, Lupin had caught into Tonks’s habit to sneak into the owlery for peace and quiet.  
Tonks was looking at him with a smile. She sat in front of him and for a second he feared that the girl would lose her grip and fall through the window, but surprisingly she sat down without troubles and threw a small silver package.  
“What’s…?”  
“Muggle chocolate…” she replied “Dad sent me a whole box yesterday. You’ve been up into werewolf reading recently, haven’t you?”  
“Eh...yeah. I was curious about something…”  
“About werewolves?”  
“Yes…”  
“Can I ask what?”  
Lupin snorted.   
How about why I don’t feel like I need to tear down your throat when I’m a wolf? He though.  
“It’s...complicated.”  
“Try me…” she said biting her chocolate.  
“Do you think a werewolf could...I don’t know recognize people or feel some sort of attachment to them?”   
Lupin knew it was a stupid question. Wizards that were well educated regarding werewolves had never addressed this possibility, why would an first year student in Hogwarts even think about it?  
“I reckon he could…” she said thoughtful.  
Her answer came out naturally and without doubts. It was the way she always said what she thought without fear that made him admire her.  
“But...werewolves are tagged as monsters, and books all say that they are unable to recognize friend or foe. They only instinct is to attack and to prey…”   
“Books also say Unicorns don’t exist…”  
Lupin chuckled.  
“No book would say that. We all know unicorn exists... What kind of book were you reading?”  
“A muggle book...” Tonks shrugged “But that’s the point. To muggles it doesn’t exist because they’d never seen one, but to us it exists because we have seen them. Do you see my point?”  
“I am afraid no…”  
“What’s written in books is what the writer has seen, but just because you haven’t seen doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Werewolves aren’t too different from wolves, and wolves aren’t too different from dogs. So...if you ask me if I think that a werewolf could recognize people they like or dislike, and even feel attachment...I’d have to say I think they do…”  
“So… let’s put an hypothetical case…”  
“Aha…” Tonks replied eating another piece of chocolate.  
“Let’s say there’s a werewolf that hunts around the forest during full moon. One day he stumbles with a girl...an innocent and defenceless girl. His first intention is to attack, but the girl starts talking to him and his aggressive intent seems to die away. Next full moon it’s the same, and then the one after and so on. It continues like that and suddenly his human side realizes that the wolf….likes the girl.”  
Tonks seemed to replay Lupin’s tale in her mind and she smiles.  
“Don’t you have the answer already, then?”  
“What do you mean?”  
“That hypothetical case just serves to proof my point. Yeah, the werewolf was probably afraid at first...he wanted to attack, but when he saw she was harmless he let it go. It was like that for a while, and eventually, they’d become friends. It might sound wrong, but it’s like having a dog. The dog will idolize, not because you’re a human, but because you’re his master…”  
“But it is dangerous…”  
“Everything is dangerous, Remus. I’m probably more dangerous than a scared werewolf…” she chuckled “Don’t forget I almost broke your leg when I tripped over you on the stairs…”  
Lupin laughed at that. She had and Madam Pomfrey wasn’t too happy about it.  
“Even a werewolf deserves love…” Tonks whispered.  
“Even if it is a hideous and horrible monster?”  
Tonks looked at him with a faint smile.  
“Even the most hideous creature deserves a chance…”   
Lupin was speechless. Sometimes he wondered if Tonks was real at all. How could she be so...understanding?  
“Who said?” he asked her softly.  
“I did...and in a few years when I’m all famous and quoted around the world, you’ll have the honor of saying that you heard it one afternoon while you were sharing muggle chocolate in the owlery…” she laughed throwing small ball of wrapping paper at him.   
Lupin dodged the ball by using his book as a shield and let out a wave laughter. His concerns about the dangers that the wolf could represent to the girl were still there, but a new feeling had appeared with her words: hope. Hope that perhaps what Tonks believed was true and that he wasn’t the monster that he thought himself to be.  
“I don’t know how you do it…” he chuckled.  
“Do what?”  
“See things so...clearly.”  
“Ha..If only I did. I just have a funny way of seeing things I guess…” she smiled “Second looks aren’t as bad as people think, aren’t they? Lily said that you and Severus were practicing potions together yesterday…”  
Tonks rested her chin on her hand and blinked at him with dreamy smile. It was an expression that he had come to understand as her way of, nonverbally, saying: I was right, wasn’t I?  
“He was kind enough to help me out with a cleaning potions that was giving me troubles…” Lupin nodded “I was actually surprised that he agreed to help…”  
“Well, you earned his good favors. I heard you’ve been coaxing SIrius and James to leave him alone…”  
“I...have tried, but I doubt it was my influence that has persuaded those two…” Lupin chuckled “I’d think a certain Hufflepuff scold was the real reason…”  
“Oh….haha, never saw James and Sirius so scared, have you?”  
“Remind me never to make you angry…”  
“Remus...please. You’re the sweetest thing in the world how could you ever make me angry at you?”  
Lupin felt his cheeks blush at her unintended compliment, but Tonks had been busy petting her owl to notice. The boy rested his chin on his hand as his green eyes stared at the girl in front of him with a smile.

***  
“She what…?” Sirius said coughing up the juice he’d been drinking.  
James jumped to his bed and bagan pattin his friend’s back amused. Lupin had just told his friends about his unintended meetings with Tonks during the full moons and the boys had taken the news better than he’d anticipated.  
“Easy there Pads...don’t drown yourself…” James laughed.  
“She petted you?” Sirius was astonished “What the bloody hell? WHat normal person goes and pets a random werewolf so freely?”  
“She thinks it is a wolf…” Lupin reasoned.  
“So what? Wolves can bite too. Merlin, that girl deserves my respect…” Sirius barked in a laugh “Here we are...breaking our necks trying to figure out all the animagus thing, and she goes in all her grace and has you eating from her palm like a pup…”  
Lupin glared at Sirius half heartedly. He’d hate to admit that perhaps Sirius was right.  
“I got to visit, Andromeda and ask her how she raised that girl...and then I’ll have to thank her…”  
“She’s...something else…” Lupin sighed sitting back on his bed.  
“Somebody who treats a werewolf as a dog and actually befriends Snivellus…” James smiled “Yeah, she has to be out this world.”  
“She’s wonderful...but it is dangerous. I can’t trust that the wolf won’t bite her…”   
“He hasn’t so far, has he…”  
“Werewolf can’t be trusted…” Lupin said shaking his head “I…”  
“So what are you going to do?” Peter asked “She’s ...well hard to control…”  
Hard to control wasn’t quite the word that Remus would have chosen, but if his fuzzy memories weren’t wrong, Tonks was definitely fond of the wolf and stubborn as she was, she wouldn’t let go that easily.   
Lupin couldn’t help, smile. Besides, how was he supposed to tell her that he knew about her night strolls under the moon?And there was also that conflicting part of him that didn’t want her to stop visiting him in the full moons.   
“Are you telling her the wolf is...you, mate?” James asked.  
“I...don’t know. I should...shouldn’t I?”  
“I’d say you wait for a bit…”Sirius said.  
“Yeah, no rush…” James agreed.   
Lupin sighed. He had never felt this conflicted in his short life. A part of him felt the usual horror that revealing his secret usually carried. The fear of rejection; but the other told him that with Tonks, it’d be alright. A tiny voice in his head keep assuring him that no matter what he was, Tonks would always be willing to accept him.  
“By the way. What about detention?” Lupin asked with a raised eyebrow.  
Sirius and James exchanged looks and broke into laughter.   
“You wouldn’t believe it…” Sirius said.   
“Snivellus saved our necks…”  
“Snape?”  
“Yeah, he persuaded Slughorn that the Cauldron incident was due to ...how did he say it?”  
“Boreas evident inability to follow proper instructions regarding the proper order of addition of ingredients and stirring…” James said solemnly “Slughorn totally bought it, so we were spared from detention…”  
“I think I might be going nuts, but maybe...maybe Snivellus is starting to grow on me…”   
“I hate to say it...but...I think I am too…” James said dramatically before breaking into a laugh.   
Lupin rolled his eyes and let out a chuckle. Tonks was probably totally clueless of the impact she’d had in their lives, but he was grateful about that.

***  
Bellatrix bursted into the halls of Malfoy Manor ignoring the many glances from her fellow Death Eaters as she made her way into the inner chamber. She pushed the doors open with her wand and looked around with her dark eyes. A man with long silvery blond hair stood a few steps from her. His clear eyes judging and arrogant. The witch let out a snort as she recognized the man who had been courting her youngest sister the past few months.   
“Modest as usual, Bellatrix…” Lucius said with frown.  
Bellatrix glared at the man. If it wasn’t for Narcissa’s sake, she would have hexed the man right away.   
“Now, now...my dear Lucius. Let us not admonish, dear Bellatrix …” a voice said from one of the room’s largest seats.   
“My lord…”   
Bellatrix rushed to the feet of the of the chair and stares up at its occupant with adoration. Voldemort caressed her head in a way that resembled a father caressing his favorite child. Bellatrix picked one of his hands and brought it to her lips.  
“You’ve been busy, Bellatrix.”  
“My lord, I did as you commanded. I’ve sent a message to all those blood traitors out there…”  
“Oh, yes. I’ve seen…” Voldemort nodded in approvement “A clever way to send a message. You never disappoint me. It was a very careful pick, was it not?”  
Bellatrix smiled as she took pride on Voldemort’s words. She raised to her feet with a cruel smile.  
“It’s been a while since I sent a present to my dear sister. I thought I could use the occasion to send her my best regards…”  
“Ah...no doubt she received a surprise…”Voldemort said in a soft sizz as a large snake began climbing around his shoulders “Have you found what I instructed, Lucius?”  
“I am afraid not, my Lord…” Lucius said softly “The...creature is harder to find than we anticipated.”  
“I see…”  
“With all due respect, my lord. Why are you so interested in this….creature?”  
“Have you ever heard about Nyaphes, Lucius?”  
“I...I am afraid not, my Lord.”  
“Marvelous creatures. Elementals, as some wizards calls them. Powerful to the point of divinity. It is said that the apparition of a Nyaphes is an omen of change. They have the power to warp time, give and take lives…”  
“That...sounds intriguing, my lord.”  
“Intriguing? Ah yes….of course. Unfortunately, Nyaphes are scarce, very rare to find. They’re smart creatures, you see? But they’re powerful...very powerful. No one has seen one in centuries…”  
“My lord, if that’s the case...uh, is there really a chance for us to find one?”  
“Ah...always the questioner, Lucius…” Voldemort reply with a hoarse chuckle “There’s the case. A Nyaphes was seen here in England some years ago… eleven years to be more precise...”  
“Eleven years is a long time, my lord. How can we be sure that the creature is still here…”  
“Oh, it is...No doubt it is.” Voldemort said petting his snake’s head “I’ve spoken to the seers. Nyaphe’s only shows themselves when they bestow a blessing and they’re quite protective. They will remain close to the one who receives it…”  
“So...if we find the blessed, we should find the creature…” Bellatrix stated with a smile “Do you know who it is, my Lord? I’d be delighted to bring him or her to your presence.”  
“I’m afraid not, my dear Bellatrix. Not doubt the person with show up eventually, but if we find the Nyaphe’s first, it won’t matter.”  
“My lord, if may ask. What do you want this...creature for?” Lucius asked.  
“You dare question, our Lord’s plans?” Bellatrix snapped at him.  
“Of course not. Never...but I am curious of what could have caught our lords attention.”  
“Ah, Lucius. So young and ignorant. Nyaphes are powerful, with one under you control you can cause hurricanes and earthquakes, or maybe something more simple like changing events in history. Do you understand how a valuable tool it is? ”

Lucius said nothing. The power to change the events of history. Was that even possible? How powerful could those creatures be? 

“I understand, my Lord. I shall intensify the search…”  
“I’ll leave it to you, Lucius. Do not disappoint me. Now Bellatrix...I have another task for you…  
“Your wish is my command, my lord.”  
Voldemort’s pale factions wrinkled in a cold smile. His plan was set and soon, nothing would be able to stop it.

***  
Tonks woke up for a nightmare. Her room in the Hufflepuff tower was dark and chilly. She could hear the faint sound of breathing from her roomates as they slept tranquil and oblivious to night horrors; but Tonks isn’t. She cleans up the drops of sweat from her face and slipped in to her shoes and robes.  
It was a recurrent dream. She’d had it since she was young; at the time she’d sneak to her parents room where her mum hug her telling her it was just a dream and her father would made her some hot cocoa.   
Thousand times better than draught of peace. He would say and her dreams would vanish with the comfort of her parents. But here in Hogwarts, she was alone. It wasn’t exactly a nightmare, now that she thought of it, it was more like a unnerving dream. It had no sense or plot, only random images from people she felt familiar, but could not quite recognize. Then there was the wave of feelings the images carried: fear, pain, sadness. Sometimes it was just too much to take.   
Tonks slipped out from the tower and walked down to the lower levels. Perhaps a stroll in the night and some fresh air would make her feel better. Lost in her thoughts, she missed the last two steps from the stairs crashed loudly against something warm.  
“Merlin’s sake, Nymphadora. Watch where you’re going!”  
She recognized the annoyed voice. She raised her face and found Snape’s pale face staring at her in annoyance. He was sitting on the ground after she had dragged him in her fall, a bag lying a few steps from him.  
“Don’t call me Nymphadora…” she said annoyed “What are you doing up so late?”  
“I should be the one asking you that…”  
“I asked first…”  
Snape had long learned to not argue with the girl. Instead he pushed himself up and patted of the dust from his clothes.  
“I offered to help professor Slughorn gather ingredients for his next class. I was heading to meet him…”  
“At this hour?”  
“We are picking Moonbloom flowers...they…”  
“Bloom around midnight...right. That makes sense…”  
Snape frowned at her as he turned to walke away.  
“Hey...can I join?”  
“No…”  
“Well, I don’t think you can decide that. I’ll ask professor Slughorn.”  
“Honestly, are all Hufflepuff as stubborn as you are?”  
“Maybe? It is part of the house’s virtues after all...”  
“You’re not dressed for ingredient gathering…”  
“I’m perfectly dressed for adventure, Severus…”  
Much to Snape’s annoyance, Slughorn welcomes Tonks participation with open arms. Professor Slughorn was quite eccentric at times, he spent half of the way into the forest talking about how much of a wonderful student her mother was and about how gifted, for a muggleborn, her father was.  
Tonks had never entered the forest, she’d strolled around the edge of it during full moon nights. That’s how she’d come to meet Mr. Wolfie, but she had never stepped beyond the limit. Slughorn said that the Moonblooms were flowering in a small clearing not too deep into the forest, so it was safe and they shouldn’t worry; but as she stepped into the the shadows she began to feel uneasy.  
“You shouldn’t have come if you were going to be so scared…” Snape muttered to her and she replied by giving him a soft punch in his arm.  
“I’m not scared. Nervous and scared aren’t the same…”  
“We are with a teacher. Nothing is going to happen…”  
A lot of things could happen, she thought. True, they were with a teacher. A experienced wizard many times more powerful and skilled than them; that should give out some reassurance; but at the end, the teachers were human too, and no human is unbeatable.  
“Care to say what were you doing sneaking around so late at night, Nymphadora…”  
Snape’s voice was a mix of teasing, scolding and curiosity. Even though she was annoyed by his insistence to use her first name, which she knew was un purpose to work her up, she was pleased by the fact that the shy stoic boy was finally starting to see her as a friend.   
“Had bad dreams and couldn’t sleep. I thought I’d go for a stroll to clear my head. Do you always volunteer for this kind of...jobs?” she asked quickly before Snape could ask about her dreams.  
“Sometimes. I like potions and I learn a lot more during this kind of experiences than from classes and books alone…”  
“The potion brewing prodigy, aren’t you? I’m sure you’ll end up being Potions teacher in a future…”  
“As long as I don’t have to teach you…”  
“I’m not that bad in potions, you know?” she said elbowing him.  
“Yes, of course...like I haven’t noticed after all the tutoring I’ve given you.”  
“It’s practice for when you become a grumpy teacher…”  
“Very funny, Nymphadora…”  
“Can you stop calling me that?”  
“No”  
Tonks knew when a battle was lost and nothing she did would persuade Snape from using her first name as long as it annoyed her. The trio reached the clearing and Tonks almost lost her breath at the beautiful view. She’d never seen Moonblooms in real life; she had read about them and seen them in books, but she thought that the description in them didn’t give the flowers proper credit.  
The flowers were ghostly white and glittering like diamonds; even in the lack of light they seemed to glow with their own light. The corolla of the flowers were composed by numerous smaller petals surrounding a carpel with golden stamen. Their perfume was bewitching: sweet and fragrant, and Tonks couldn’t help but feel lucky to have stumbled with Snape.  
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Slughorn said happily “Moonblooms are hard to come by. They’re awfully hard to grow and can only be harvested from the wild. Magical properties are only useful when they’re harvested in full bloom and that only last around two hours between 10 and midnight. A very tricky flower. Now, now...children. I’ll show you how to cut them and we can start…”  
Spending the late hours in the forbidden forest cutting flowers with a friendly potions professor and a cranky Snape wasn’t exactly a planned adventure, but Tonks found herself enjoying herself. Snape seemed particularly cheerful as he asked Slughorn about the flower’s properties and their application in potions, and she could swear she’d never seen the boy happier. She was listening, too, but not with as much devotion as he did.   
She picked up another pair of flowers and as she searches around the plants she comes face to face with some brilliant cobalt flowers.   
“Aconite…” Snape muttered behind her “Didn’t expect to find it here…”  
“What is it for?”  
“Many uses...but I wouldn’t touch it. Is way to poisonous…”  
“Wolfsbane…” she said softly.  
“What?” Snape asked with a frown.  
The word had come into her mind and she wasn’t fully aware why. It was important, but she couldn’t tell why.   
“Wolfsbane…” she repeated trying to understand what meaning the word held to her.  
“Ah...yes, that’s another name it receives.” Snape nodded “Anyway...let’s hurry. It’s almost midnight.”  
Tonks nodded. She stared at the flowers and once Snape had turned back to his own chores, she cut the aconite flowers into a small bouquet and pushed them into her bag. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt like she had to take them with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ehm...I don't really have any comment about this chapter. Oh well, except maybe that Nyamphe's were made up, since I couldn't find any real creature that could fit my plotline.


	8. Always there

“The best way to cheer yourself is to try to cheer someone else up.”   
― Mark Twain

The month went by quietly, and one morning, a thin coat of ice and snow was covering the grounds of the school. Tonks liked winter, she loved seeing the snow fall through the window, but unfortunately, winter usually meant more visits to the hospital wing for her. Frozen stairs, snow and her two left feet were a bad combo for her and others’ safety.   
“Don’t be a grumpy log, Snivellus…” James laughed.   
Despite everyone’s effort to have James and Sirius stop calling him that, the nickname had stuck, but it had lost most of its negative connotation, so Tonks and Lily had simply given up. Snape seemed to have gotten used to it by now and sometimes, only sometimes, he would answer to it.  
Today however, the Slytherin boy was making his best efforts to ignore the pair of goofy Gryffindors calling at him. Sirius and James have began plotting a epic snowball battle and they were pulling up people into teams. James was stuck with Peter and, surprisingly, Lily, and he was now trying to persuade Snape to join his team.  
“No...aren’t you all filled up already?” Snape growled irritated “Three and three is fair…”  
“Yeah, but Sirius has got the advantage. I mean my team is Peter and Evans...not offense.”  
“None taken, Potter; but maybe I should switch teams so that I hit you with my best snow ball…” Lily said sticking her tongue at her.  
“I’m convinced your team is in far better position considering that Black has got Nymphadora, in his team…”  
“For the name of all druids, Severus. Stop calling me that…”  
They all laugh at the fact that Tonks had taken more offensive the use of her first name over the fact that Snape had insinuated that her clumsiness was a liability to Sirius’s team.  
“No…” he replied simply.  
“Oh, you piece of Billywig…” Tonks laughed throwing a snowball at him.   
Snape raised an eyebrow and dodged it casually.   
“See? You are good...now stop being an arse, Snivellus and come join us…”  
“I pass…”  
James let out a defeated grunt and turned to Sirius who was smirking amused.   
“Well...we are even, James…” Sirius chuckled “My cousin can barely stand in her feet.”  
“Fine...Loser gets the candies…”  
The snowballs war was an utter mess that had Snape rolling his eyes in annoyance, but Tonks could have sworn that the boy had been laughing when no one was watching. Lily had proved James wrong by being extremely good at throwing snowballs. Sirius had barely missed the last few rounds she had thrown at him.   
Lupin had managed to hit Peter with one of his own and the smaller boy had rolled over the snow in an hysterical wave of laughter. Against Snape’s predictions, Tonks seemed to be handling herself pretty well over the snow, so far she had barely tripped once, and it had actually saved her from a well aimed snowball thrown by James. However, the only reason she had managed to stay on her feet so far was because of Lupin. The boy had stayed close to her and he had managed to prevent her from falling several times earning a few chuckles from the younger girl.  
“You stop laughing between yourselves and help me out here!” Sirius roared from abouve the laughter.  
“Sirius is calling…” Tonks laughed.  
“So it seems…” Lupin nodded “Think you can stay on your feet?”  
“Ha...I think I can manage. Let’s save my sassy cousins butt, shall we?”  
Tonks grabbed a bunch of snow and threw it unceremoniously at Lily. The snow hit her right at her back making the ginger girl break into giggles.  
“Oh, dear me...haha seems that I’ve been taken down…” she laughed.  
“Sorry, Lily…” Tonks laughed.  
“Seems like you’re doomed James…” Sirius chanted victorious “Attack!”  
James fell to the snow laughing as a rain of snowballs fell over him.By the time the attack had ended, James hair was so covered in snow that his dark was in a freezing gray and his cheeks were vividly pink.  
“Alright, alright…” he panted “I give up. You win…”  
Sirius seemed satisfied. He helped his friend back on his feet with a large goofy grin; after they had all caught their breaths, the group - Snape included- headed back inside the castle. After spending the whole afternoon in the cold, the comforting warmth from the castle was welcomed in their bodies.   
With the approaching christmas, most of the students had already left to go home to spend christmas with their families, so the Great Hall was quite empty when the group sat down to have a warm supper together.   
“Are you going home for christmas, Tonks?” Lily asked.  
Tonks didn’t reply immediately. She’d have wanted to go home, but with her grandparents dead, the ambient at home wasn’t exactly cheerful and her parents had insisted that she should stay at school and enjoy it with her friends instead.  
“No, I’ll be staying for the holidays. My parents said that it’d be better for me...considering…”  
“Well, I’m not going home either...so we can spend christmas together, cous…” Sirius said cheerfully “We aren’t going home either…”  
“Christmas is a lot better in Hogwarts anyway…” Peter nodded.  
“What about you Evans?” James asked.  
“Severus and I are staying, too…”  
“Oh, then the whole gang can bundle together for our own little christmas party…” Tonks smiles.  
“That wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’m sure that James and Sirius wouldn’t mind sneaking some food from the kitchens…” Lupin smiled.   
“Ah, leave it to us…” Sirius smirked “Since we Gryffindors are majority, I say we do it in our tower…”  
“You are expecting us to enter your house…?” Snape frowned.  
“Well, I don’t think there’s a problem in that…” James shrugged “Honestly, I think it’d be only us and there’s no rule that says we can’t sneak people from other houses ...is it?”  
James turned to Lupin waiting for an answer.  
“What?” Lupin said cluelessly.  
“Well, you’re the one who knows the school rules by heart, Remus…”  
“I do not…” Lupin frowned “but as far as I know there’s no rule for that. We could always ask McGonagall though…”  
“Oh well, professors are always encouraging good relations between houses. Wouldn’t they be happy if we do something together?” James shrugged.   
“James has a point there…” Sirius approved.  
Snapes frowned and he was about to say something, but was roughly interrupted by Tonks.  
“Ah, we should be fine Severus. I’m sure there won’t be a problem, so don’t worry about it.”  
“Who said I was worried?”  
“I did…” Tonks replied sticking her tongue at him.   
“Cute, Nymphadora. Very cute…”  
“Ha...I knew you thought I was cute…”  
“It was a sarcasm….”  
“Lovely…”  
Lily chuckled at our exchange.   
“You two really get along well…”  
“Yes!”  
“No”  
The difference in the tone of their voice made that answer hilarious to the group. Snape’s voice was cold, deadpanned and perhaps a little annoyed, while Tonks had been over excited and happy. The contrast was simply too big.   
“Ah, come on…” Tonks pouted “We do a good team gathering potion ingredients for Slughorn.”  
“If you consider me doing all the work while you’re goofing around teamwork…”  
“I just did that once, and it was because we stumbled with Remus…”  
After their little night adventure harvesting Moonblooms with Slughorn, the friendly potions teacher had invited Tonks to join them in future ventures. A request that the Hufflepuff girl was glad to accept; as a result, she had ended up going ingredient gathering with Snape several times.  
“I must declare myself guilty…” Lupin smiled “I was just curious to know what you were up to.”  
“See…?” Tonks stated matter of factly “I’ve been useful the other times. Who would have thought that ingredient gathering could be so fun?”  
“You make me want to try it myself…” Lupin nodded.  
“Oh, do. I’m sure Slughorn wouldn’t mind a pair of extra hands…”  
Snape looked like he wanted to hit himself with the table. He could now say goodbye to his quiet gatherings.  
“I’ve never gone to any, either…” Lily admitted “It might be fun…”  
“You won’t enjoy it, Lily.” Snape replied “It’s messy and we often stumble with bugs…”  
“Ew...bugs…”  
“Yes, nothing a girl should get tangled with.” Snape shrugged.  
“Hey...I’m a girl…”  
“...Oh...Then I should correct myself. Nothing a girl except Nymphadora, should get tangled with...”   
Tonks glared at him. She picked one of the peas in her plate and threw it at his direction. Lily giggled as the two exchanged poisonous glares.  
“Is it really that bad, Tonks?” she asked.  
“Not at all. We haven’t stumbled to any insect so far...except that giant spider, but professor Slughorn took care of it…”  
“He wouldn’t have needed to, if you hadn’t pulled from its feet…”  
“Hey, it’s not my problem if acromantula feet look very alike to Fissy grass…”  
“Sounds thrilling…” Lupin chuckled “you two do have fun doing it, don’t you?”  
“Yes…”  
“No…”  
“Maybe we should all ask Slughorn and next time we can all go into an excursion with him. I could use some extra credits in Potions…”   
“You know that’s a good idea. I’m so bad at potions…” James snorted.  
“Sounds scary and restraining…I’ll pass…” Peter said.  
“Ah, common, Peter…”  
“At this rate will end up being the “Gathering Club”...” Lupin laughed.  
“Oh, Slughorn would be thrilled to have another club under his wing…” Sirius approved.  
Snape couldn’t do anything sigh in defeat.   
“When is your next “gathering”, cous?”  
“Eh...Severus?”  
“Icepoppies will be up for harvest in two days…” Snape replied.  
“Awesome...guess we can join you for it. We’ll ask Slughorn about it...”  
“That’s a plan. Now who wants hot cocoa?”

***  
After an exciting afternoon, Tonks was ready for some peace and quiet, so she sneaked into the library and sat in her usual spot in the Muggle Literature section. She had finished Whitefang a couple days ago, and was now starting on the Hound of the Baskersvilles. Her love for Muggle novels was a living reflection of her dad’s.   
“Somehow...I had the feeling that I’d be meeting you here…”   
Tonks lifted her eyes from the page she’d been reading and smiled. Lupin had taken seat in the chair in front of her. He, too, was holding a book that -to Tonks pleasure- was from the muggle section ,too.   
“Ah...The Lord of the Rings…” she said resting her chin on her hand “That’s my dad’s favorite. How are you liking it?”  
“It is pretty amazing…” Lupin said with a smile “ the creatures, the world…”  
“I remember asking my dad why Hobbits weren’t listed in Fantastic Beast and Where to find them…” she chuckled.  
“And what did he tell you?”  
“That Newton Scamander never found his way to middle earth, that’s why…”  
They laughed. To Tonks it was nice to have someone she could talk about Muggle books beside her father.  
“My mother had this books in her shelf for ages, but I never thought of picking it up…”  
“Your mother?”  
“She’s a muggle…” Lupin explained.  
Tonks thought that she should have seen that coming. It explained why Lupin was much more familiar with Mugglet topics than Sirius, James and Peter.  
“Oh, you just didn’t know what you were missing. My dad used to read me that as bed time stories. My mum thought it was way too complicated for a girl my age, but she was speechless when my dad and I began talking in sindarin…”  
“Sindarin? That’s elvish, right?”  
“Yup, it is. My dad’s family is Welsh and SIndarin is very similar, so he had no problems to learn it. He ended up teaching me just to annoy my mum. Sometimes we would speak to each other in sindarin and watch my mum’s face as she couldn’t understand a thing…”  
“Sounds like fun...is it easy? Could you say something?”  
“Im enjoui cín companui mellon ni” she replied “That goes for, I enjoy your company, friend. I’m not very good at it. My dad is an expert though…”  
“It is still very impressive. What are you reading?”   
“Sherlock Holmes…” she replied showing him the book “The Hound of the Baskersvilles. It just reminds me of a canine friends I made here….”  
Lupin almost choked, but he managed to keep himself calm as he turned to see her.  
“Canine…?”  
“Yes. I originally thought he was dog, but it turns out he was a wolf.I named him Mr. Wolfie, but now that I think about it...I’m not sure if it is a he…”  
“You...named a wolf?”  
“Well...yeah, he’s friendly and nice. You know...he kind of reminds me of you…”  
“M-me? Why would he remind you of me?”  
“You’re both good listeners and caring…” she smiles tilting her head “I hope he’s okay. The weather is getting pretty cold…”  
“I’m sure he’s fine...he probably has where to stay and besides, his fur will keep him warm.”  
“Yeah, I suppose. Silly me for worrying when he’s far better prepared than myself. Perks of nature, right?”  
Lupin smiled faintly. Either she was way too perceptive of her little comparison was a very accurate coincidence; then again, he doubted that his human self was remotely similar to his wolfish self; if only...then he wouldn’t have to worry about hurting anyone at all.  
Lupin was woken from his thought when something hit him straight in his chest and his lap. A small square chocolate wrapped in a colorful gold and green wrapping rested neatly on his lap. Another of Tonks’s muggle sweets, he guessed.  
“It has mint filling…” she smiled “I know you like mint...and chocolate…”  
She wasn’t wrong. He loved mint and chocolate.  
“And who told you that?”  
“You always have mint tea amd you carry chocolate in your pockets. Let’s say I did an accurate guess…”  
Lupin chuckled. She had been paying attention to his tea? Somehow it made him feel a little happy.  
“Do you always look at other people’s food habits so carefully?”  
“Only when I like them…” she replied with a wink “Feel honored, Remus. I’m not sharing my dad’s christmas sweets with anyone but you…”  
“And why do I have this honor?”  
“Just for being the sweetest boy I’ve ever met…”she chuckled “So why did you come here to read?”  
“James and Sirius are in the middle of a very noisy gobtstones match, and I just couldn’t focus on my reading between their growls and Peters over excited squeals. How about you? Isn’t the Hufflepuff tower comfy enough to read?”  
“I just wanted somewhere for myself I guess…” she shrugged “Don’t get me wrong. I feel comfortable in Hufflepuff tower; almost like home. It’s just…”  
“People?” he whispered. He’d noticed that Tonks certainly had problems to connect to her fellow Hufflepuff students. As a matter of fact, she seemed to have struggles connecting with any other students but them.  
“Yes, I suppose it is that. I don’t know...I just feel like I somehow don’t fit in with them.”  
“I don’t see why? You’re a lovely girl…”  
“You sound like my dad…” she snickers “but truth to be told, I’ve aways been kind of an outcast. I’ve always had a tiny bit in my head that often tells me I don’t belong here, that somehow...I shouldn’t be here. It’s ridiculous, I know…”  
“No it isn’t…” Lupin replied staring at her face. Sometimes he felt like that, too. He was a werewolf and werewolf weren’t even supposed to learn magic. He should be living among his kind,somewhere dark and isolated; yet, here he was, in Hogwarts with a set of wonderful friends and talking about books with the loveliest girl he’d ever had the fortune to meet.  
“I think I feel like that at times, too. It’s okay, if you can bond with the other Hufflepuffs. You have us…”  
“Yes, I do. Even if Severus is so thrilled to remind me that you’re older…” she chuckles “but I’m good. If I had focused on befriending the other Hufflepuff girls, I wouldn’t be hanging out with you, and then I’d never have known what I missed…”  
Tonks attention seemed to drift away for a while and he saw her toying with a lock of hair under her hood. If he hadn’t had particularly keen view in the dark, he’d probably had missed the faint shade of pink under it. Somehow, he could picture her with a bright pink hair; the color totally suited her and he wondered if she’d ever let him see her without the hood. Well, technically she already had, but he’d been a wolf at the time, so that didn’t count.  
“Tonks...can I ask you something a little ...er...personal?”  
“Uh? Eh sure...as long as it isn’t something awkward ,haha….”  
“Why the hoodie?”  
Tonks stared at him. She wasn’t mad or annoyed, she was simply considering her answer.  
“Well...maybe I have antlers or a second face under it that I don’t want you to see…” she smirked and he laughed.  
“Liar. Lily got a glimpse of it once when you two were shaking off the snow. She said you had pretty burgundy hair. Why hide it?”  
“Burgundy, huh?” she said absently “guess I was content…”  
“What?”  
“Oh, no. Nothing. It’s complicated...my hair isn’t actually...uhm...a very traditional color. I just don’t like to stand out.”  
Lupin wanted to say that she didn’t need her hair to stand out, but it’d sound wrong and he didn’t mean in it in a rude way. They had more in common that he would have thought, she didn’t want people to know what she was for fear to stand out and rejection, just as much as he didn’t want others to know what he was.   
But unlike him, her gift was something wonderful. A expression of the purest and most natural magic. People wouldn’t judge her the way they’d judge a werewolf…  
“Are you scared that you’ll get...mocked?”  
“What?Oh, no. I couldn’t care less about it. In fact I think I feel some sort of pride about it, but...maybe I’m a little scared.”  
“About what? It’s just hair…”  
“Yes, just hair…”  
“I hope that someday I get the honor to see that mysterious hair of yours. Can I get at least get a hint of how it looks?”  
“Well…” she smiled “today it is a little lighter and shorter… perhaps…”  
If Lupin hadn’t known better, he’d have thought the girl was joking; but considering she was a metamorphmagus, she was probably hiding the truth behind a joke.   
“Let’s make a deal, Remus…”  
“Oh, I’m all ears…”  
“The day you tell me a secret, I’ll tell you mine…”  
Lupin stared at her without knowing what to say. He had a secret; a furry secret that came by every full moon, but he wasn’t sure how he felt about telling her something like that. Despite all her words, she’d never faced a real werewolf and people’s mind were bound to change. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever be ready to tell her that secret.  
“I...don’t know. I have a secret I guess, but it’s not something I like…”  
“ It’s okay, Remus...whatever it is, it doesn’t change who you are.” she smiled.  
Tonks gave him a small smile as she set back in her seat with her book as Lupin stared at her dumbfounded. 

 

***  
Christmas morning was as festive as it could ever get. Tonks woke up to find a small tower of presents lying at the feet of her bed and owl jumping over her pillow. She tried to ignore the pinch of grief that hit her chest when she remembered that this year there wouldn’t be a hand knitted jumper from her grandparents and took a deep breath before looking at her presents. The largest box was her parents’, they had bought her a new set robes for her to wear on New Year and she smiled as she sensed the fabric on between her fingers. It was light, delicate but resistant; and it had nice hood. Just like the ones she loved.   
Lily had gotten her a set of very pretty hair pins that had small pink flowers. It was her subtle way to encourage her to take off her hood, Tonks guessed and she let out a chuckle. She would wear the pins, too bad nobody would see them under the hood.  
James, Sirius and Peter had bundled up for her present. It seemed like some intent of musical boy that had a wolf dancing sillily in a tutu. A clear reference to her frustrated wish to learn ballet and her obvious preference to wolves. The gift was silly, but she loved it.   
Even Snape had bought her something. He had gotten her a book Magical Plants and Herbs: a guide for the Ignorant Mind; the first page of the book was scribbled with his neat handwritting: See if you can learn how to properly recognize and harvest them instead of asking me how to do it every five minutes. She stuck her tongue at the message and laughed trying to imagine what would be Snape’s face when he saw her gift. She had sent him a book as well: 100 and 1 ways to defeat grumpiness and be happy.  
The last present was Lupin’s and as she opened it she couldn’t help but laugh. Her and Lupin’s mind had to be weirdly connected since she opened the box to find a beautiful bookmark made of a pressed hyacinth that sparkle with magical tiny stars. She had gotten him almost the same exact thing, but instead of a hyacinth, his had some pressed Lupines from lively colors. She had found the pun amusing and a bookmark had seemed absolutely fitting. Additional to the bookmark there was a small note and a chocolate bar; she left the chocolate on the table and picked up the note. His writing was neat and careful, just as his owner.

I wasn’t sure what to get you, and Sirius suggestions were a little too out of tone. However it seems that we share passion for un-traditional books and a bookmark seemed propper.  
I know you hate your name, but I read somewhere that it means “Gift from the nymphs”. There are some pretty flower nymphs called Anthousai, muggles say their hair is made of hyacinths.  
So i thought the flower was quite fitting!

Merry Christmas!  
Remus

So they had ended up getting each other some punny presents. He gother something that reminded of nymphs and she gave him a bunch of Lupines. Coincidences could be quite curious, she thought laughing to herself.  
Tonks stared at the magical bookmark and smiled. With a quick move she put inside her book and left it on the side table as she rushed to get dressed. 

The Great Hall was wonderfully decorated with 50 trees illuminated with fairy lights. Each tree had its own theme with colourful garlands, spheres, tinsels and crystals. The teachers were already sitting in their places at the end of the hall. Dumbledore was cheerfully talking to professor McGonagall and Flitwick; Hagrid was laughing loudly at some joke that Professor Sprout had said and Slughorn was telling some sort of story to madam Hooch.  
As soon as Tonks entered the hall, she saw Lily waving cheerfully at her. The girl was wearing a red sweater with a pleated skirt. Sitting next to her, with his usual dark theme outfit, was Snape. The other four Gryffindor boys were nowhere to be seen.  
“Wotcher! Merry christmas…” Tonks smiled.  
“Merry christmas Tonks!” Lily said cheerfully “Oh, Tonks thank so much for the bracelet. It was beautiful!”  
“Glad to know you liked it! Thank you for the hairpins, Lily.”  
“I’m expecting to see you use them…”  
“Oh, I will...one of these days, maybe…” Tonks replied sitting in front of Snape “Thank you for the book, Severus. I hope you liked my present…”  
“I found the contents of it...irrelevant…” Snape replied annoyed.  
“Well, you did mock my brains with the book you sent me. I’m sure you’ll find a good use for the book just like I will…”  
“What did he get you?” Lily asked curiously.  
“Magical Plants and Herbs: a guide for the ignorant mind.” Tonks shrugged and chuckled “I got him 100 and 1 ways to defeat grumpiness and be happy, so we are even haha…”  
“You two are the most hilarious thing…” Lily laughed.   
“What’s the joke? I want to know…” Sirius said dropping himself at the seat right of Tonks “Hey cous…”  
“Yeah, what are you laughing about?” James asked sitting by Lily’s side with Peter“Oh...apple tarts!”  
Tonks was about to say something in reply as Lupin sat down in the other empty seat at her left.   
“Wotcher, Remus…” she said smiling.  
“Hey, you’re are having fun, huh?”  
“Oh, we were discussing Tonks and Severus’s christmas exchange…” Lily chuckled “It was hilarious…”  
“Really?” Sirius said curiously “What did Snivellus, get you cous?”  
“Oh, a very useful book to remind me how little I know about magical herbs…” Tonks chuckled.  
“Oh? Potion making tips?”  
“Nop, basically a handbook of magical plants...for dummies.”  
Lupin chuckled.   
“That should come in handy someday…”  
“Sure, it will…”  
“And what did you get him?”  
“A guide book to be less grumpy and more happy…” Tonks smirked.  
A general laugh filled the table as they ate cheerfully.  
“So, did you get Lupin a book, too, Tonks?” Lily asked.  
“Oh, I did think of that, but I ended up getting him something else…” she replied.  
“Those two…” James chuckled pointing at them “Their minds are connected or something. THey practically gave each other the same thing…”  
“Really?”  
“It wasn’t the same…” Lupin chuckled shaking his head “same idea, though…”  
“What did you get?”  
“Bookmarks…” Tonks and Lupin replied at the same time.  
“See what I mean?” James laughed “and not any bookmark...no they had the same kind of bookmark with the same magically dried flower thing and the sparkles…”  
“ They weren’t the same flower…” Tonks pouted “Mine was a hyacinth…”  
“And mine was a Lupine...pun intended I reckon?” Lupin added turning to her.  
“You got me…”   
“Aw...I think that’s a really cute present…” Lily smiled “And very useful too, considering both of you are avid readers…”  
“Yeah, that really doesn’t match. I mean...cous, Remus destiles bookworm all over, but you don’t look like a reader…”  
“Don’t judge a book by its cover. I’m smarter than I look…” Tonks said winking at him.  
“She’s probably better at school than you, Sirius…” James laughed.   
“Oh, shut up James…”  
Tonks smiled. Frankly, she’d been a little uneasy about celebrating Christmas after what happened to her grandparents and she knew her parents had insisted on her staying in Hogwarts for the holidays hoping that the company of other kids would cheer her up.   
After finishing breakfast, they headed outside. James and Sirius were cheerfully chasing Peter around with a bunch of levitating snowballs while the rest sat down and watched the trio.  
“Shouldn’t you...I don’t know...stop them?” Tonks said watching- with a bit of pity - how Peter seemed to be suffering from the physical effort.  
“It’s not like they’d listen to me…” Lupin replied apologetically.  
“And there I thought they’d listen to your reasoning…”  
“I think they only listen to my reasoning 50% of the times.”he chuckled “usually when it comes to making up mischief…”  
“Who would take you for mischievous person, Mr. Good boy…”  
“Don’t judge a book for its cover…”   
“Hey...don’t quote me!”  
“It’s a popular quote. I’m not actually quoting you, Tonks…” he laughed.  
Tonks snorted. Her look quickly scanned her surroundings. James and Sirius were now trying to pull out Snape into the snow, and Lily was laughing at Snape’s horrified face.  
“That’s your doing…” Lupin said “And you were right. He might act as he’s annoyed, but he’s actually pleased. He isn’t as bad as we originally thought, I’m glad we gave him a chance. Sirius and James won’t admit it but...I’m sure they’re growing fond of him...”  
“Ah...Severus is a sweetheart...grumpy and all.”  
“I reckon you’re right; but I’m afraid we probably would have never known if you hadn’t smacked some sense into us. You’re pretty amazing, you know?”  
“Ha… if you consider tripping amazing, I guess I am.”   
There was a moment of pleasant silence, interrupted only by joyful screams and laughs. The sound was comforting and contagious; and it made Tonks feel better.  
“There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humor” Lupin said with a smile.  
“Charles Dickens…”Tonks nodded “I remember that. A Christmas Carol was my grandfather’s favorite Christmas story. He’d read it outloud on Christmas while we were sitting in the living room...”  
“...I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”  
“No, it’s alright. It’s...strange and sad, but I think I’m getting over it...slowly…”  
“If you need to talk, you know I’m all ears…”  
“I know that…” she answered punching his arm playfully “and I appreciate it. I really do…”  
“Do you want to read A Christmas Carol today? I’m sure we can sneak out from these bouffons and hide in the Muggle Section. They’ll never think of searching us there…”  
“You want to read it?”  
“In honor to your grandfather’s memory….yes…”  
Tonks smiled. She didn’t know why, but having Lupin console her gave her a slight sense of deja vú. It was a pleasant familiarity that she couldn’t quite explain, but she decided that she didn’t want break her head over it. As long as he was willing to give it to her, she’d gladly accept it. That’s how friendship worked after all.


	9. Paroles under the moon

“Sometimes it's the crazy people that bring out the best in us”   
― Aishabella Sheikh

 

Christmas and New year went by in a blink and spring came by soon after. The snow in the school grounds melted away and the plants started growing once more, bringing cheer and life to the cold scenery. Little by little Hogwarts was coming back to life once more after a brief period of ice and loneliness.

“Very well done, Ms. Tonks…” Professor McGonagall nodded in approvement when Tonks switched herself back to her original form.  
The girl smiled. With McGonagall’s careful tutoring, metamorphosing herself was becoming easier each day. She could hold her body changes for longer periods of time, but even though morphing her hair was becoming easier, the change was still unstable and at the minimal change of mood her hair but switch into another color or length which clearly frustrated the young Metamorphmagus.  
“Patience, Ms. Tonks. Your improvements are already very satisfactory. There’s no need to rush, we have time to work. You’re still young, for a child your age, separating feelings from your powers can be really difficult, but I’m content with your improvement. You should be proud…” the stern teacher said pushing a cup of steaming tea in front of her.  
Professor McGonagall was a very strict witch, so receiving a praise for her was a whole achievement. Tonks nodded and smiled in gratitude as she picked up the teacup and sipped the amber liquid.   
Suddenly, there a was aloud knock on the door and McGonagall pushed herself up from her desk and opened the door. Tonks couldn’t help but feel curious about who had been knocking the door so insistently, so the girl peeped from over the chair and looked over McGonagall’s shoulder.   
Filch was standing at the door dragging some familiar faces on his rear and Tonks had to bite her lip to contain her laughter. Filch’s head was covered by what seemed to be a mane of bright yellow feathers that reminded her of a canary. Sirius and James waved enthusiastically at her, while Peter tried to hide behind them and she saw Lupin covering his face with his hand.   
“Professor McGonagall…” Filch growled.  
“Mr. Filch...Do I want to ask?”  
“Caught this pair trying to hex Tavis Boreas…”   
“Ah...and I reckon the hex got diverted…” McGonagall said with a frown, but Tonks was sure that the older woman was hiding a smile“Reparifarge…”  
With a wave of her wand, McGonagall undid Filch’s hideous hairdo and stared sternly at the four boys with a raised eyebrow.  
“You can leave now, Mr. Filch. I will handle this…”  
Filch let out an angry growl as he walked away glaring at the four Gryffindors and mumbling something about nasty students and their nasty spells and Tonks just wondered how someone who disliked kids as much could be a school’s caretaker.   
“Ms. Tonks, I think we can call it a day. It seems I have some business to take care with my...students. I’ll see you next week…”  
“Yes, professor McGonagall.”   
Tonks jumped out of her seat and it was then that she realized that she had forgotten to put on her hood and she rushed pull it up before any of the boys could notice her hair turning brightly magenta. She smiled at them and rushed out of the office before any of the boys could say something.   
McGonagall closed the door behind her and turned to the four boys with a stern frown that would have terrified the bravest man, but Sirius and James were already too used to it by now. The pair gave the teacher one of their most charming smiles and Lupin had to shake his head to not laugh.  
“Well, I expected this from Potter, Black and Pettigrew; but Lupin?”  
“Well, can’t help it…”Sirius shrugged “Considering what they were saying, professor?”  
“I see. Was Mr. Boreas saying something about you, then. I’d expect you to know better than to listen…”  
“It wasn’t about me…” Lupin shrugged.  
“Yeah, not us…” Black nodded “I can take the hit. I couldn’t care less about what that miserable git has to say...but...he was going and going about my cousin and that I couldn’t tolerate it. Muggles or not, they were her family and we weren’t going to let him talk so disgustingly about the death...”  
And Lupin had agreed. Usually, he was the voice of reason in the quartet trying to stop his friends from taking things a little too far, but when he had heard Boreas talking about the murder of the Tonks with such pleasure, he had gotten pretty mad. Perhaps it was because of the upcoming full moon, but he was a little less tolerant of the Slytherin’s sick sense of humor. When Sirius had said he’d hex him, Lupin didn’t try to persuade him otherwise.  
McGonagall’s face seemed to soften when she heard their explanation. The Gryffindor teacher seemed to quite sympathetic to Tonks, despite not being a student from her house.  
“I just regret that the hex got Filch instead of Boreas…” Sirius pouted “But I don’t regret the original target…”  
James hadn’t said a word, but he was nodding in agreement.   
“We just didn’t want him talking about it when Tonks is around…”Lupin sighed “She says she’s better, but...it’s still a sensitive topic.”  
“Boreas is an ar….bad person. So the only way to shut him was to teach him a lesson…” James threw in matter of factly.  
McGonagall’s brow was raised. The woman pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a soft sigh. She could see the noble intention in the four Gryffindor’s actions, but rules were rules; and there wasn’t a reasonable excuse to hex another student.  
“You will serve detention for three weeks I will owl you when the time comes. For now,10 points less for Gryffindor...I do hope you will refrain yourselves from acting like this in the future…” she said firmly “You may leave now…”  
The four boys nodded and thanked the professor before leaving the office discreetly. Sirius was particularly annoyed about the unfairness of the situation, but Lupin reasoned that McGonagall had actually gone easy on them.   
When the quartet turned around the corner and found Tonks sitting at the stairs with her chin resting on her hand and playing with a furry cat.   
“Waiting for us, cous?” Sirius said with a grin.   
“Nope...just got distracted with him…” Tonks replied pointing at the cat “Of course I was waiting for you. So...how did it go?”  
“We have detention for the next three weeks…” James answered “I think this is the first official detention that Remus gets...haha...how does it feel, mate?”  
“Should I be feeling something?” Lupin replied.  
“Well, you’re the good boy. I expected you to feel all disappointed and all..”  
“I honestly don’t regret what I did…” Lupin replied “so if I was feeling like that it’d be hypocritical..”  
“And what exactly did you do?” Tonks asked tilting her head.  
“Hah...Remus, is a genius. While we distracted everyone with the canary head hex, Remus used the Furuncle Hex on Boreas. He’s going to be in a hell of a pain, he’d never know why…” Sirius smirked.   
“And this is the first time that Remus takes initiative to hex someone. Usually he’s just trying to persuade us not to do it…”  
“ I think we should celebrate that…” Peter said with a smirk “I can go pick up some snacks in the kitchens.”  
“I might have been a little...annoyed. “ Lupin smiled.  
“He...was...brilliant…” Sirius said putting his arm around Lupin’s shoulders “By the way cous, I just saw you without your hoodie back in McGonagall’s. You have a pretty nice head, why hide it?”  
“Well, that’s none of your business….ha….” she said sticking her tongue at him “Hoodie’s are my style, leave me alone…”  
“I just say it is a pity to hide it …” Sirius chuckled “What were you doing at McGonagall’s anyway?”  
“Oh,..I have special transfigurations tutoring with her…” Tonks replied.  
“What? Why…?”  
“Because I’m a talented girl” Tonks replied winking at them.  
“I never got special classes in first year...and I was top in Transfigurations!” James said indignant.  
“Actually, Remus was top. You were second…” Peter snorted.   
“Irrelevant…”  
Tonks seemed a little conflicted and Lupin guessed that she was probably worried about what explanation she should give them, so he was quick to come in her aid.   
“Well, James. I don’t see why you care. It’s not like you’d have liked to have extra classes…” he said with a smile.  
“Good point. I’m alright with quidditch training instead.”  
“So...what are you doing now, cous?”  
“Well, I have got ingredient gathering with Slughorn. I’m going to pester Severus while he collects tubeworms, of course…”  
“Aren’t you a little too clingy at him?” Sirius frowned “Don’t tell me you fancy Snivellus…”  
“What? Of course not. THe thing is, the more he’s annoyed the more fun is too pester him…” she laughed “You can tag along if you have nothing else to do. I doubt Slughorn is going to complain…”  
“Well, we can do that…” Sirius shrugged “Lead the way, Tonksie…”  
***

“Ah...more students I see…” Slughorn smiled when Tonks arrived with the boys and she saw Snape roll his eyes.   
The boy had taken off his robes and rolled the end of his pants many times as he prepared to step into the shallow pond. Tubeworms were aquatic, so it made sense that they’d have to get a little wet to get them.   
“I reckon there’s little chance that there are leeches in there, right?” Tonks said looking at the swampy water with apprehension.  
“Scared of leeches, Nymphadora?”  
At the use of her name, she rolled her eyes and splashed Snape in annoyance.  
“Excuse me if I dislike the idea of worms sucking my blood…”   
“Ah don’t worry, Ms. Tonks. There are no leeches in this pond, a few tadpoles perhaps….but no leeches.” Slughorn said cheerfully.  
“Ah, well...I can deal with tadpoles…” she replied removing her shoes and socks.   
The water felt cold around her legs and she shuddered. The rest of the group had gotten into the pond as well and she saw Sirius and James kicking water at each other between laughs. She could hear Snape’s annoying sighe a few feet from her and she snickered. Peter seemed slightly dubious about getting into the water and -always caring- Lupin was coaxing him to get in.   
“All right, children…” Slughorn said clapping his hands to get their attention “Tubeworms aren’t difficult to find, but the trick is in catching them. They are quite slippy so make sure to hold them right. We need the red ones, so if it isn’t red you can release it!”  
Catching a tubeworms was much easier said than done; at least for Tonks who had to struggle not to lose her footing every two minutes. Slughorn hadn’t been joking when he said that Tubeworms were hard to hold, she thought as she lost the grip of the one she’d been trying to catch for the past 5 minutes. Tonks let out an annoyed sigh and looked around her. Snape was in full focus mode, she could have been dying and the boy would probably not even notice it; James and Sirius were enjoying themselves chasing after the worms and splashing anything on their way; Peter seemed to be having fun on his own, too, even when he was evidently not fond of getting splashed by the other two...and Lupin…  
Tonks suddenly realized that she couldn’t see him. He was nowhere to be seen, but she was sure that he’d been there just a minute ago. Lost in her thoughts about Lupin’s whereabouts, Tonks feet got stuck between a couple rocks and with a lot of noise -and splashing- she fell into the water dragging Snape along with her, when she grabbed his shirt, or at least she thought it was Snape.   
“I was wondering when that would happen…” someone laughed by her side.   
Lupin’s shoulder were shaking in laughter. His brown hair was covered in plants and his clothes were completely drenched.  
“Remus! Where did you come out from?”  
“What are you talking about? I was behind you the whole time haha…”  
“Why in Merlin’s beard where you behind me?” Tonks said wide eyed. Well that, at least, explained why she hadn’t seen him “Do you have a death wish? Now you’re all drenched because of me…”  
“Haha...it’s not a big thing. Just some water...it’s not going to….”  
Tonks would never know what it wouldn’t do since his words were interrupted when hundreds of Tubeworms began jumping around them. She wasn’t scared of bugs, but the sudden appearance of hundred of worms ready to hit her was a sight that could scare anyone and she wasn’t the only one panicking.  
“Children ...children…!” Slughorn voice cried loudly above the sound of screams, laughter and splashing “Children, please calm down! It’s alright, tubeworms aren’t dangerous. This is their normal reaction to stress...!”  
After the whole panicking part had passed, the situation was actually rather amusing and after a few minutes, all of them -Snape included- were chuckling at the absurdness of the situation. By the end of the afternoon, the red tubeworms had been collected and the six students were soaked and exhausted, but very amused. None of them would ever look at tubeworms the same way anymore.

***  
Full moon arrived a couple days after their misadventure with the tubeworms, and like other nights, Tonks was anxious and restless.   
She rounded the edge of the forest with her hands tucked inside her pockets until she reached her usual sport. She had sneaked some meatballs from dinner with the intention of feeding Mr. Wolfie when she saw him that night; at least, she hoped she’d see him.   
She rested her back against the large rock that she usually used as seat and stared at the sky. The moon was particularly big tonight: round and shiny. It was a breathtaking sight, but to her it was just sad. There was no reason in particular, the moon just made her feel like that. The sound of a broken branch made her turn her head.   
“Mr.Wolfie...is that you?” she said.   
Two amber eyes stared at her from the shadows and Tonks smiled pushing herself up, but the moment the wolf stepped out from the shadows, her heart froze. It wasn't Mr. Wolfie. This wolf was bigger, with a thick coat of black fur; its eyes were threatening and it’s mouth showed some sharp teeth leaking on saliva. Tonks didn’t need to look twice to know that, unlike Mr. Wolfie, this wolf was ready to attack her without mercy and she took a step back. The unknown wolf was growling as he got closer and closer and Tonks was mentally debating whether to run or not.   
If you face a wild animal, don’t run...Nym. Sudden movements can scare them and trigger their aggressiveness...you must move slow and quiet…  
Her grandfather’s words echoed in her head as she took another step back: slow and silently. The wolf was staring at her threatening as it moved closer and closer; then suddenly it jumped over her. Forgetting about been quiet and careful, Tonks let out a screech and managed to dodge the wolf barely by a few centimeters. The wolf turned around in a quick spin and jumped at her once more.   
Tonks threw herself aside to avoid the animal; this time she wasn’t as lucky and the wolf managed to scratch her leg leaving a long deep cut. She moaned in pain and tried to get back on her feet before it attacked her again, but the pain in her leg wasn’t letting her move. The wolf seemed to understand her situation and Tonks could almost swear that it was smirking.  
The wolf readied itself to attack and the girl closed her eyes awaiting the impac; but it never came. When she opened her eyes she saw Mr. Wolfie standing between her and the wolf. The difference in sizes was evident, but Mr. Wolfie didn’t seem to care. He was showing his fangs and growling angrily. What happened next was so fast that Tonks could barely understand it. Mr. Wolfie had jumped over the wolf sinking its fangs on a spot on its neck. The wolf had let out a groan and shook Mr. Wolfie off from himself.   
The two wolves struggle against each other and Tonks was terrified for Mr. Wolf’s safety. She had brought out her wand, but as the two canines were now too close to each other, she was afraid that if she tried a spell, she would hit Mr. Wolfie by mistake. A few minutes of despair passed, and finally the wolf seemed to give up. It growled at Mr. Wolfie one last time before running off into the forest with its tail tucked between its legs.  
Tonks let out a sigh of relief. Mr. Wolfie had won the fight, but to her horror, he hadn’t made it unscathed. Ignoring the throbbing pain in her leg, Tonks rushed to the limping wolf. He seemed startled by her sudden presence, but after sneezing the air he seemed to recognize her and the wolf relaxed.  
“Oh, no...Mr. Wolfie….” she cried “You’re injured!”  
Mr. Wolf was limping, his right front paw had a nasty gash that was bleeding; the rest of the injuries were minor scratches, much to Tonks relief. However the injury on his paw was worrying; it was bleeding to much and if it got infected, Mr. Wolfie could get very sick. She had to do something, but she wasn’t a healer and she knew nothing of healing spells unlike her dad.  
Tonks looked around desperately trying to think of something when she noticed a bush a few meters from them. She recognized it immediately.  
“Wait here...I’ll be right back…”  
Snape’s christmas gift was doing honor to its name, she thought as she limped to the small patch of plants. The plants had a soft, woolly covering of white-grey hair on its stems and round green leaves with tiny rose-pink flowers surrounded by brighter purple-pink bracts: Dittany. The book had said that the plant had very powerful healing properties even in its raw state. Tonks pulled out a few of the plants and hurried back to where Mr. Wolfie was licking his injury.  
“All right...let’s see…” she said to herself “What did the book said….”  
Tonks did a great effort to remember the entry on Snape’s book: macerate the plant and apply directly over the wound. Secure it with bandage making sure to apply pressure.  
“Ok...Macerate first…” she said picking a couple rocks and starting smash the plants between them “then...apply on the injury….I’m sorry Mr. Wolfie...this might sting a little…”  
A little was probably overrated, considering the growl that Mr. Wolfie had made when she had put the green paste on his paw. Tonks waited for the wolf to calm down before proceeding.  
“Apply pressure with a bandage….but I don’t have bandages!” she cried in panic “Ok...no, Tonks...you gotta calm down and think. There has to be something you can use instead…”  
The girl began poking into her pockets searching for anything useful until she stumbled with her white handkerchief. It had been her grandmother’s. Tonks stared at the piece of cloth; it was a memento from her beloved grandmother and she would be lying if she said she wasn’t reluctant to let it go, but Mr. Wolfie had gotten injured because of her; he had saved her. Her grandmother would have prompt her to do it.  
Tonks shook her head and used the handkerchief to bandage Mr. Wolfie’s paw making sure that it was tight enough to ensure contact with the plant, but not too tight to harm him more.   
“There...this...should do, I think…” she said looking at the wolf. His amber eyes were stuck on here “I’m so sorry...you got hurt because of me…”  
Mr. Wolfie nudged her hand in a gesture that tried to tell her it was alright. The wolf then turned to look at her bleeding leg and turned back to her with stern eyes.  
“It’s nothing...it’s a scratch…” she replied understanding the meaning behind those stern eyes “I will put the rest of the dittany on it and it should heal without problems…”  
The wolf was staring at her with something that Tonks could only interpret as concern. Why was he so worried, she wouldn’t know. After a few minutes she looked at her leg and the gash was gone leaving only a faint mark.  
“See? It’s gone. I’m alright. It wasn’t that deep…” she said scratching his head “it could have been worse, but...you saved me…”  
The wolf closed his eyes enjoying the girl’s touch;he leaned his head on her lap and letting it rest there. The fight with the other werewolf had left him exhausted and he could sense the worry, panic and terror from his human side, but there was nothing that he could do until tomorrow. For now, all he wanted was sleep.

 

Lupin woke up back in the Shrieking Shack the next morning. His muscles were stiff and in pain making him groan in discomfort as he pushed himself up from the ground. As he looked around himself to assess the damage done by his misadventures he noticed Tonks’s white handkerchief was still tied on his arm as a friendly reminder..   
Tonks!   
She’d been attacked by a werewolf last night. Why and how it was there, he had no idea; but he didn’t want to think what could have happened if he hadn’t made it on time to interfere.   
His memories were fuzzy, but he could remember the important parts. Tonks had been injured, but it had been a scratch and not a bite and besides that and the evident panic in her, she’d been unharmed. For the first time in his life, he was grateful to his wolf for protecting her.  
Lupin stared at the handkerchief. The white cloth was soaked in his dried blood and putting aside his worries, he was amazed by Tonks actions. She had just been attacked by one of his kind, and yet there she was, panicking and almost crying because he’d been hurt. Lupin smiled faintly; the boy waved his wand and the blood in the fabric vanished, leaving the item clean. Lupin folded the piece of fabric carefully and put it inside the inner pocket of his robe. He would figure out a way to give it back to her.  
Madam Pomfrey wasn’t too thrilled with his scratches, but as usual, the nurse didn’t ask how he had gotten hurt and devoted herself to heal them as best as she could and force feed him a pain easing potion. Almost two hours later, the woman had been satisfied enough to release him.  
Lupin wanted to check on Tonks and make sure that his memories hadn’t fooled him and that the girl was indeed okay, but he needed to speak to professor Dumbledore first. The boy gave to gargoyle the password hoping that it hadn’t been changed and was relieved when the statue moved aside and let him pass.   
Dumbledore was pacing around his office when he knocked. The old wizard a smiled at him from behind his half moon spectacles with a welcoming look.  
“Ah, Mr. Lupin. What an unexpected surprise. I would have expected you to be in bed after a rough night of full moon…”  
Snuggling in bed was definitely something that Lupin wanted, but priorities had to be addressed before he could spoil himself.  
“Yes, professor. It was a rough night…” Lupin answered “but...there was something I needed to tell you and...well, it was important…”  
“Then please take seat, Mr. Lupin. I am sure you’re barely able to stay on your feet…”  
Lupin accepted Dumbledore’s offer and sat down in front of the headmaster’s desk. Dumbledore paced around the room for moment before coming back and sitting down. Soon a cup of tea had been poured in front of Lupin and some chocolate biscuits appeared magically in a plate.  
“Please, I don’t reckon you have had breakfast yet…” Dumbledore smiled “So...what’s this important thing you need to tell me about?”  
Lupin took a bite of the biscuit as he tried to think how to phrase it. He didn’t want to get Tonks into troubles for walking around during forbidden hours.  
“Yesterday…” he began “There was another werewolf in the school grounds…”  
Dumbledore looked at him silently. He was waiting for the boy to continue.  
“It attacked a student; I …”  
“You don’t need to worry about it. Ms. Tonks wasn’t bitten…”  
Lupin was frozen. His green eyes looked at Dumbledore with a mix of confusion and horror.  
“Hagrid found her asleep in the pumpkin orchard with some scratches and a partially healed laceration on her leg this morning. Naturally, we had to address the situation…”  
“Is she…?”  
“Her leg will heal properly as long as she doesn’t trip in the next few hours…” Dumbledore smiled at him. There was a small glint of amusement in his blue eyes “I don’t remember her parents to be so clumsy and accident pron. Makes you wonder where she might have taken that from, don’t you think, Mr. Lupin?”  
Lupin didn’t answer….  
“Her story was quite...interesting. She was quite concerned about a certain...wolf that had gotten himself injured trying to protect her from another one.. I believe she called him...Mr. Wolfie?”  
Lupin chuckled weakly. Why she had come with such a silly name, he had no idea, but somehow he found it cute from her.  
“Am I right to assume you are Mr. Wolfie, Mr. Lupin?” Dumbledore asked. His smile had gotten bigger.  
“I know I shouldn’t have...I’m dangerous to her and…”  
“Well, Mr. Lupin...judging by the events from last night. I am actually glad that you did. If it hadn’t been for you, I’m afraid that Ms. Tonks would have more than a injured leg…”  
And he knew Dumbledore was right. If his wolf hadn’t had the instinct….no, the necessity to make sure Tonks safe, she could have been killed. Wasn’t it the whole reason why the wolf had made a habit of accompanying the girl during her Full Moon strolls? And then, the unanswered question that kept popping in his head after every full moon came once more: why?  
“I don’t understand it professor…” Lupin said “Werewolves...we are dangerous creatures. We live to kill and hurt people, it doesn’t matter who...but...with her...it’s different. It’s like ...I still know her, even if I’m a wolf…”  
Dumbledore stared at him with his usual inquisitive look that made Lupin feel as he was being carefully examined.  
“Some things in this world are too complex to be explained…” Dumbledore finally said “It is, indeed, unheard of a werewolf that could recognize his friends and family in his transformed form, however… Mr. Lupin, unheard doesn’t mean it is impossible…”  
“I just...don’t understand it. Why her? I can’t even recognize my parents…”  
“Yes, but perhaps because Ms. Tonks seems to be a very special case…”  
“Special...case?”  
“Yes, she might have something that no one that has seen you in your transformed form ever did…”  
“I don’t know what, sir.”  
“Think of it, Mr. Lupin. What’s the first thing anyone who sees you as a wolf think? Feel?”  
Lupin stared at the amber liquid in his cup. What would anyone feel? Hatred? Disgust? ….Fear?  
“Fear…” he finally said “Tonks wasn’t scared of me….even when she saw I was a wolf.”  
Dumbledore smiled in approval.  
“Yes, Ms. Tonks is quite a special young lady in more ways than one. I was warned beforehand, by her parents, about her difficulties to stay put during the Full Moons; so I was keeping an eye on her during her night strolls…”  
Lupin was now staring at the professor with confusion.  
“I must admit I was a little worried the first time you two met…”   
“You….saw that, sir?”  
“Oh, I did. I originally intended to interfere, but I am now happy that I didn’t. It’s been rather interesting to see how the relationship between her and her werewolf friend evolved.”  
Lupin thought Dumbledore was crazy. Hadn’t he thought about the dangers? But then again, a part of him was thankful that he’d allowed Tonks to stay with him in those horrid nights.  
“Tonks...is a strange girl…”he sighed “ people would say she’s crazy for some of the things she says…”  
“And yet...sometimes the crazy ones are the wisest ones. Ms. Tonks certainly can be quite wise for her age, wouldn’t you say so Mr. Lupin?”  
He didn’t answer, but hadn’t he thought the same thing a few times before?  
“From what I’ve heard from Professor McGonagall. You and your friends have become quite protective of hear, so I wouldn’t say that it is only the wolf who seems rather attracted, and she seems fond of you as well…”  
“She doesn’t know what I am, professor.”  
“And do you think that would make a difference?”  
Of course it’d make a difference. People was different when they knew, but somewhere in his head a little voice told him that she wouldn’t care, and he wanted to believe it.  
Dumbledore chuckled.  
“I reckon that only time will tell. Thank you for telling me about the werewolf. I shall look into this matter to prevent any future incidents. In the meantime, Mr. Lupin...perhaps you will want to take a well deserved rest…”


	10. Summer stories

"Summer night--  
even the stars  
are whispering to each other."   
— Kobayashi Issa

 

The end of the school year arrived. It felt like it’d been yesterday when she had say goodbye to her parents and boarded a train completely alone; and now she was about to board the train once more, but unlike the first time, she was now joined by a group of noisy Gryffindors and a pretty grumpy Slytherin.   
“I can’t believe the year is over!” Sirius growled “Ah...it’s gonna be quite a boring summer. I might sneak to your place, James…”  
“You know mum and dad always welcomes you anyway…” James chuckled “Same as Peter…”   
“So I take you live pretty close by?” Tonks asked sitting down next to the window.   
“Yup, east London...pretty nice actually…” James nodded.  
“You mean snob…” Sirius snorted.   
“You two are city boys huh?” Lily said tilting her head “That explains a lot.”  
“Severus and you are neighbors, aren’t you?” Tonks asked.  
“Yes…” Lily nodded with a smile.  
“You’re lucky...I don’t think I have anyone close to hang out on summer…”  
“Where do you live?” Lupin asked.  
“York...a small town called Castleton…” Tonks shrugged.  
“Ohhh, you’re a yorkie too? Well, don’t worry about that. Remus here is a yorkie, too.” Sirius smiled.  
Lupin rolled his eyes at Sirius use of a dog breed to address them. He then turned to Tonks who seemed quite excited about the news.  
“You’re from York?”  
“Yes, Heatham Hollow….it isn’t far from Castleton. We might as well hang out during summer…” he smiled.  
“See that’s fixed…” Lily smiled “You won’t be lonely after all. Remus will visit you! And we will write you tons of letters, right Severus?”  
“Oh, I was planning on that anyway. You think I’m going to let him forget about me during summer? Not a chance…” Tonks laughed.  
“...I might consider burning anything you send me, Nymphadora….”  
“FOR MERLIN’S BEARD….it’s TONKS….” she answered annoyed and she saw the grumpy Slytherin smirk. Well, as long as the boy was a little happier, she could deal with the name harassment.  
“I might as well go visit some time, too.” Sirius smiled “go see old cousin Dromeda.”  
“Mmm as long as you’re in good terms with her...I wouldn’t want her to Hex you because a Black stepped into our front yard…”  
“I only met her a couple times when I was a kid. I liked her since she was nice. Thousand times nicer than her sisters.”  
“Well, I tell her you said that.”  
“If Sirius and Remus can go...does it mean we can, too?” James asked with a grin.  
“Well, sure I guess. I’m sure mum and dad wouldn’t mind the company and since we are at it, maybe you can drag Lily and Severus too.”  
“That’d be lovely…”  
“I pass. It’s most likely that I’d have to deal with you for another year next term. I want a peaceful summer…” Snape said shaking his head.  
“Aw...I’ll think of you too…” Tonks replied rolling her eyes and winning so snickers from the other kids.  
“We can all go visit, Remus afterwards…”   
“I’m sure my parents wouldn’t mind either…”Lupin nodded.   
“It is a plan, then.”  
It was a half made plan, but Tonks didn’t care. As long as she got to see her friends during summer vacation, she was more than looking forward to it. 

***  
Tonks felt happy to be home. Her parents had showered her with love, hugs and sweets. It was more than evident that the Tonks had missed their dear daughter, but they had been glad to hear about her friends and were more and excited about meeting them in the near future.   
The first days she had spent the mornings in the garden with her mother. The young girl would show her mum a plant and then she’d continue to tell her all the properties and uses that she had learned in her gathering adventures along Snape and professor Slughorn. Her mother would look at her proudly and ask her more about her little excursions and the kids she so fondly talked about. Sometimes, her dad would join and he would purposely ask something about a plant feigning ignorance. Then the three of them would laugh. It was the happiest she had ever been.  
Honoring his word, Lupin sent an owl a few weeks after the start of summer vacation, telling her that he and his parents would be visiting Castleton in three weeks and that’d he’d love to spend some time with her. Needless to say, she was delighted with the idea and her parents were more than glad to meet the famous Remus Lupin that their daughter was so fond of.   
That morning, the weather was nice and fresh, so Tonks had decided to take a stroll to the small river that was a few meters from her house. She was walking around down the road when she found a small featherless baby bird in the middle of the road. It was so lonely and vulnerable that Tonks didn’t have the heart to leave it there. So she picked it up carefully and began searching around the nearest trees until she came up with the nest. It wasn’t too high and the tree seemed perfectly climbable, but knowing her amazing lack of graceness, she wasn’t sure she would make the climb unscathed. The girl bit her lip in thought and looked at the bird tucked in her hand, and thought that if she had to break her arm to get the animal back in its home, then so be it. It’d be a worthy war injury.  
The climb was easy and smooth. She didn’t lose her footing nor she slipped. Perhaps she’d make it out neatly this time, she thought. When she reached the nest, she carefully put the bird back in its place and smiled.  
“There you are...no better place than home, right? And now be careful. You don’t want to fall over again,would you?” Tonks giggled. It wasn’t like the bird would answer anyway “Alright, now I’ve got to get down from here. I’ll see you around…”

Tonks turned away with the intention of climbing down and a sudden thought crossed her mind. She could now understand why cats could climb up a tree, but never climb down. The latter was much harder and when the branch she had grabbed broke sending her unceremoniously, she told herself she’d never climb a tree again.   
To her surprise the impact wasn’t as hard as she anticipated.  
“Tonks...we really need to stop stumbling to each other like this…” a familiar voice groaned with a small hint of amusement.   
Tonks looked up. Lupin was spread on the ground by her side; and she realized that she must have hit him on her way down from the tree.   
“Remus!” she groaned horrified “Oh, Merlin...did I hurt you?”  
“I’m fine….” he laughed “It’s just amusing how we always stumble with each other like this.”  
“You mean...how I always seem to fall on you?”  
“Yes, basically…”  
The two laughed. Lupin pushed himself up and patted the soil from his clothes before helping Tonks on her feet. He gave her a quick scan and was satisfied when he found no injuries on her.  
“What were you doing on a tree?”  
“Eh...getting a bird back home?” she smiled “I was doing pretty well…”  
“Until you...fell?” Lupin frowned.   
“Well, in my defense it wasn’t like I tripped. The branch broke….and I will never mock cats again. Climbing down trees is the worst.”  
Lupin laughed loudly at her last remark and Tonks smiled. It’s been a while since she heard him laugh.  
“Remus?”  
Tonks hadn’t noticed the couple standing behind Lupin until the woman had spoken. She was pretty with long honey colored hair and hazel eyes that slightly reminded her of Lupin’s; the man by her side was tall, with a friendly smile and green eyes. His hair was neatly combed, but if it hadn’t, it would have most likely looked like Lupin’s.   
“Oh, mum, dad…” Lupin smiled “This is Nymphadora Tonks. The friend I told you about…”  
“Didn’t we agree it was only Tonks…?” she pouted at him “Ehm...hello, nice to meet you. Ehm, I didn’t meant to fall on your son...it was...sort of an accident?”  
The Lupins smiled at her as they walked closer and Tonks could almost feel the flush of embarrassment in her cheeks, but she was quick to morph it off.  
“It’s alright sweetheart. Are you alright?” Mrs. Lupin asked with a smile.  
“Oh, I’m okay. I’m already used to it, I think….”  
“Falling from trees?” Mr. Lupin asked amused. His smile was the exact replica of Lupin’s.  
“Yeah, well no...I mean...mostly...falling..,”  
“Oh, if I’m not mistaken...I think Remus did mention that you two met when you fell on the train…”  
“Ah...yeah…” Tonks shrugged “How many times did I trip that day?”  
“I counted three…” Lupin chuckled “Twice in the train and one during the sorting ceremony.”  
“Oh, did you have to remind me that?” Tonks said rolling her eyes “How come you didn’t tell me you’ll come today?”  
“We just arrived. I thought about sending you an owl, but mum wanted to walk around for bit.”  
“It’s such a pretty day for a walk after all…”Mrs. Lupin smiled.  
“Oh, it is! You should go to the river. It’s a really nice sight…” Tonks smiled “My house is right up this hill. Would you like to come? My parents would be delighted with the company…”  
“Oh, we wouldn’t want to intrude. We are here unannounced after all.” Mr. Lupin said politely.  
“My parents won’t mind. We don’t get too many visitors and I think they get a little bored dealing only with me…”  
“Is that really possible?” Lupin laughed.   
“I don’t know...maybe?” Tonks shrugged “I’m not that entertaining,”  
“I beg to differ…” Lupin chuckled.  
“Either way...please. If you’re not too busy, I’m sure they’d love to receive you…”   
Lupin’s parents exchanged looks and then nodded. Tonks was delighted to lead them to her house. When they reached her house, Andromeda was planting some new plants in the garden, while Ted read the newspapers in the front porch. Both of them seemed quite surprised to see her daughter return with company, but just as Tonks had said, the Tonks were more than delighted to receive their unexpected guests.   
Introductions were made and soon the adults had headed into the living room to share some tea and pastries. Lupin’s mother, Hope and Ted soon discovered that they had gone to the same school when they were younger. They were both Welsh after all. Soon enough the four adults were happily chatting like old friends giving the younger ones the chance to sneak out.  
“Well, told you they would be happy to receive you…” Tonks laughed “Come on, I’ll give you a tour around…”  
“Does the tour include climbing trees?”  
“Maybe...but you’ll do that alone or you’ll have me falling over you again.”  
“I’m sure I could catch you. You’re quite small after all…”  
“Just because you’re tall doesn’t mean you can bully me for being small…”  
“I didn’t mean to bully you…” he laughed “I think it is cute. You don’t seem to have neighbors…”  
“No we don’t. Dad and mum prefer to keep muggle company limited and well, we are not exactly...comfortable with magic neighbors either…”  
“Why not?”  
“Well, after a whole year with Boreas rubbing it in my face, I thought you would have caught on. You’re the brilliant mind in the group after all…”  
“You mean...your mum and all the pure-blood supremacy?”  
“Yes. Mum has her own army of enemies, courtesy of my two dear aunts…” she sighed “so we keep a very a low profile, but hey. It isn’t that bad...not having neighbors, I mean…”  
“I suppose. This place is really nice.”  
“Yes, we’re close to the moors. If we climb up that hill over there, you can see them. Sometimes at night you get to see lights. Dad said they’re hinkypunks.”  
“Oh, probably. Dad was interested in that, hence why he wanted to visit Castleton.”  
“What does your dad do?”  
“He’s a researcher. He’s a specialist in Non-human-spiritous apparitions, but he does a bit with magical creatures and defense against dark arts, too.”  
“That’s so cool. Now I know why you’re so good in that assignment; it is in your blood…”  
Lupin smiled shyly as Tonks guided him to and old tree swing at the top of the hill. The spot had a wonderful view of the moors, he thought as he sat in the swing next to Tonks.  
“Don’t worry. The swing was charmed by my dad to make sure I wouldn’t fall from it in anyway, so it will stand our weight...” Tonks smiled “The view is beautiful, isn’t it?”  
“Yes, it is….”  
“It’s even prettier at night. The sky is so filled with stars…”  
“Now I see why you have the habit of taking night strolls…” Lupin chuckled.  
“How did you know?” Tonks said surprised.  
Lupin felt like smacking himself. She didn’t know he was Mr. Wolfie, so he wasn’t supposed to know about her full moon escapades.   
“Ah...Snape might have said something….”  
“Oh, yeah….I did stumble with him a few times when he was out with Slughorn.“ Tonks nodded.   
“Has Sirius written to you?” he asked trying to change the topic.  
“Oh, he did. He wrote a whole parchment complaining about his family and saying how much he wanted to visit. He’s probably run off to James by now…”  
“Yes, most likely. The Potters are really nice people. At least they are not Pure-blood obsessed like the Blacks.”  
“That sounds nice.”  
“You know there are a lot of wizards who wouldn’t mind about your mother…”  
“I know. Not all wizards are gits; but the Black family is ...influential. So…”  
“They wouldn’t want to go against them. I think I know what you mean…” Lupin nodded “Well, I’m sure my parents are more than delighted to go against that.”  
“Haha, well my dad is definitely comfortable with your mom. Can you believe they went to the same muggle school?”  
“Yes, it is curious. To think they knew each other. That’s really a surprise…”  
“I already expected your dad to know my mum; but that was a nice surprise…” she grinned “how long will you be staying?”  
“A few days. Dad wants to look around and ask some questions. Mum wanted to know the area too....”  
“Oh, maybe my mum will want to volunteer as guide. Either way, it’d be nice to have you around for a bit…”   
“That would be nice.” Lupin nodded.

They spent the rest of the morning chatting and laughing until Andromeda’s magical voice called them -using her full name, to her despair. The Lupins had to leave since they had an engagement programmed for the afternoon. So Lupin had left with his parents promising to come by the next day.  
“That’s a nice boy…” Ted said watching them walk away.  
“He is…” I smiled proudly.  
“He’s such a gentleman. It’s obvious he’s been well taught by her parents. They’re really nice people, and we don’t need to worry about repercussions, considering that Hope is a muggle. I invited them for dinner the day after tomorrow.”  
“Oh, that will be delightful. It’d be nice to have them over again.”

What they didn’t suspect, was that they’d have another unexpected visitor soon. Tonks was helping her mother pick up some mulberries for a tart she was planning to make for the Lupins when she heard voices coming from the road. She immediately recognized the strong laugh and her eyes widened.   
“SIRIUS?” she shouted when she recognize the familiar mane of thick black hair and the charming smile.   
Lupin stood behind him with a faint smile. His arms were crossed over his chest and he seemed slightly apologetical.  
“Hey cous! Happy to see me?”   
“...More like….surprised. What are you doing here?”  
“Got tired of my family, so I flooed here.” Sirius shrugged “I knew Moony was staying in a hotel close by and went to find him.”  
“It was a surprise for my parents, as well…” Lupin shrugged “Since I was planning on coming, I thought I should take him along.”  
“You live in a nice place…” Sirius said looking around “A little lonely, maybe, but nice. I like it...so what are you doing?”  
“Picking up berries….” Tonks replied still a little shocked “Mum wants to make berry tarts.”  
“Ah, I should go say hi…”  
Without waiting for Tonks replied, Sirius headed to the house and Lupin stood at her side with a smile.  
“I don’t reckon your father set some Anti-Black spells, did he?”  
“Oh...if only, haha…” Tonks laughed.

Andromeda’s shock to find her younger cousin standing in the front yard with a smile and waving at her couldn’t be described with words; but Lupin thought that her face when she saw Sirius was exactly the same look that Tonks had a few minutes before. After recovering from the shock, Andromeda smiled and dragged them into the house and showered them with food.   
“Feel fortunate. Mum doesn’t throw food at anyone…” Tonks laughed “I hope you’re hungry…”  
“Ah, I’m more than willing to eat it.” Sirius smiled “This is a thousand times better than eating at my home…”  
“Which reminds me that you haven’t answered my question.” Lupin said with a raised eyebrow “Where do you plan to stay, Sirius?”  
“Ah….that….”  
“Oh, he can stay here. We have spare rooms…” Andromeda said pouring them more tea “I don’t have the honor of receiving likeable family visits that often. You can stay with us for as long as you want…”  
“Well, thank you, Dromeda.” Sirius grinned “See, Moony? All under control…”  
“You’re just too lucky, Sirius.” Lupin sighed rolling his eyes.   
“I thought you were planning to run to James…” Tonks said tilting her head “What made you change your mind?”  
“What? I can’t come visit my two favorite cousins and one of my best mates?”  
Both Lupin and Tonks looked him skeptically.  
“Oh, fine. James and his family went off to Birmingham. He said something about paying Evans and Snivellus a visit on the way. He did say I could tag along, but it wasn’t that appealing.”  
“So you decided to run off here?” Lupin said shaking his head “Seriously… your parents must be so annoyed.”  
“I bet they are….but that’s the whole point.” Sirius replied winking at them “So how long are you staying, Moony?”  
“Not sure yet. Depends of what my dad finds, but it won’t be more than three weeks…  
“Why not?” Tonks asked curiously and Lupin seemed a little nervous.  
“Well, I have to go back...I have an event I that I can’t miss…”  
“Oh...I understand.”  
“Well you can always come back afterwards. I mean...I suppose your house is connected to the Floo...isn’t it, cous?”  
“Eh, yes. Why?”  
“Then Moony just needs to floo here and that’s fixed.” Sirius shrugged.  
“Sirius, just how long are you planning to stay here?” Lupin asked with a frown.  
“Well...I was thinking about the whole summer….”  
“What?” Tonks and Lupin said at the same time.  
“Oh, come on. I’m sure Tonksie would love the company.”   
“Sirius...you’re staying in someone else’s house. You can’t just invite yourself to stay over the whole summer…” Lupin said sternly.  
“Ah...fine. Hey, Dromeda?”  
Tonks mother came out from the kitchen with a smile when she heard her name and Tonks thought that she hadn’t seen her mum so cheerful for a long time.  
“Yes?”  
“I was wondering. Would you mind if I stayed over for the rest of the summer? You know how things are in the...Most noble and ancient house of Black…” the last part was said in a over dramatic and sarcastic tone.   
Both Lupin and Tonks turned to Andromeda awaiting her response. Her mother had made a disgusted face when she heard the reference to the family motto and her look quickly turned to pity.  
“Of course you can stay. I wouldn’t send anyone back into that hell…”  
“You’re the best, Dromeda. You were always my favorite cousin…”  
“Aw, you don’t need to sweet talk me, Sirius. You can barely remember me.”  
“Maybe, but anyone with enough guts to go against the Black stupid ideas is my idol.”  
Andromeda smiled and shook her head before disappearing into the kitchen once more.  
“Well...that was easy…” Tonks said with a raised eyebrow “You’re such a sweet talker, Sirius.”  
“Just being honest, cous. Just being honest…”  
“He always gets away with it…”Lupin sighed.   
But despite their complains, having both Lupin and Sirius around made that summer one of Tonks’s best ones. The trio had their own small bunch of adventures in the area, from chasing a porlok in the forest, to catching up hinkypunks in the moor which result in Tonks falling into one of swamps.   
Hope spent almost the same amount of time with Andromeda that her son did with Tonks and Sirius. Despite being from two completely different worlds, the two women got along pretty well and Andromeda was more than glad to show her some of the herbs in her orchard and their uses.  
When the day of the Lupin’s departure came, both Sirius and Tonks were a little sad, but after Ted had assured that his chimney would always be open for any of the Lupin’s, the boy promised to visit again soon.  
And so the days passed, and the full moon lit up the sky over the moor. Tonks, as usual, had sneaked out from her room and was sitting on the swing watching the sky as her thoughts flew to a certain wolf. She wondered if Mr. Wolfie was missing her as much as she missed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mmm observations for this story....well, for this AU. Tonks family has become a little of an Outcast because of her mother status as Traitor. The Black family is very influential and naturally, wizards that share their philosophy over Blood Purity, will see them as deservers of punishment, while those who might not share this thoughts are just to intimidated to do anything. As a result, her family lives in a sort of isolation and that's why Tonks wasn't allowed to interact with other wizards when she was younger. Her parents feared that she might fall victim to the Black's vengenful attack.  
> This probably never happened in canon, but since this is fanfiction everything is possible lol. Also the timeline is quite messed up for now, but there will be an explanation for that later on.  
> Now thank you for reading!


	11. Heartchanging realizations

"There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered." 

—  **Nelson Mandela**

 

Summer passed in a blink of an eye. The amount of time spent together allowed Sirius and Tonks to bond and she now saw him as the brother she didn’t have. To Sirius was more than pleased to take on the role and he enjoyed teasing the girl. Lupin came to visit several times during the three months of summer vacation; sometimes on his own and some other accompanied by his parents. 

When September 1st came, the three stood together in the platform 9 ¾  saying good.bye to their families and ready to board the train back to Hogwarts. 

Unlike the year before, Tonks didn’t have to seat in a compartment with unknown people; in fact she was now trapped in a very crowded space with four Gryffindor boys with lots of energy, a girl with lots of things to tell her and a quiet and grumpy Slytherin boy who was having too much fun calling her by her full name. 

“So this year we get to go to Hogsmeade…” Peter said excitedly “Finally!”

“It’d be fun and we will bring you lots of things, Tonks.” Lily smiled. 

Sometimes it was tough to be younger, but surprisingly, she didn’t feel bothered or envious of them. In fact, she felt ...normal. She wasn’t that excited to visit the town after all.

“Oh, don’t worry about me, Lily.” Tonks smiled.

“Blimey, I always forget you’re one year younger, Tonksie.” Sirius said pouting “And there I was planning some adventures for us…”

“You can have your adventures without me, Sirius…”she laughs “I’ll be fine. There’s always something to do in the castle.”

“You wouldn’t have this problem if you hung out with the students from your year instead…” Snape said with a frown.

“Oh, well...mind you. Maybe I’m too mature to be with people from my age…”

“If you’re comparing you matureness to theirs...then maybe you should have skipped another two years…” Snape shrugged pointing at James and Sirius who were know making faces and jokes with some chocolate sticks.

“...Fair enough…” Tonks chuckled under Lily’s laughter “Then let’s leave it at...I hang out with you because I like you…”

“And that’s a good reason enough…” Lily approved “Come one, Severus. You’re not really annoyed about it. You were asking about Tonks each time I got her  owl.”

“I was just curious of what new stupidity she had done with Black…” he replied quicker than necessary and Tonks chuckled.

“But no. For real, I’m alright. I’m not dying to go to Hogsmeade, anyway…”

“You’re not? I mean there are lots of things to do and see there…”Peter asked incredulously.

“It’s just a town…” Tonks shrugged “A town with pubs, with shops, with people…like any other town. I can survive a year without going, I am sure.”

“You’re probably right…”Lupin nodded “but that doesn’t change that we will miss your company…”

“Aww, I can give you a picture so that you can keep it in your pocket.” 

“I’m sure Remus would like that…” James laughed and Lupin elbowed him. 

“Still...we will bring you a lot of things and then, next year, we can all go together.” Lily said.

Tonks nodded. The conversation soon drifted to some other random topics; Lily was happy to tell her what things she and Snape had done during summer vacation and Tonks was happy to tell her about the her own. Sirius would occasionally jump in with a funny memory and then Lupin would most likely remind him that it had all been his bad ideas. The trip to Hogwart felt shorter between the laughs and jokes the filled the tight train compartment.

The group reluctantly fell apart when they entered the Great Hall. As much as they’d have prefered to share the table, no all of them were Gryffindors. The SLytherin table was just next to Hufflepuffs and if she ignored the idiotic face of 80% of the table occupants, Tonks could find some solace from Snape sitting right behind her. 

“Say what Half-blood scum. No one tried to kill you this summer?” Boreas laughed. 

“Ignore him…” Snape whispered in a barely audible whisper.

Tonks smiled. Snape could be rude and had no reservations when claiming how much of an annoyance she was, but the he sure knew how to let her know he was on her side when the situation required it, she thought as the sorting of the new first years took place.  

“Hm...none seemed to trip this time..” she caught Snape whispering behind her “Disappointing…”

“Well, mind you. That seems to be a privilege reserved for me…”

“Normal people wouldn’t sound so proud about it…”

“Have I ever been normal?”

“Heh, you just admitted it.”

“What?”

“That you’re abnormal….”   
“I never…ahg..you  know what, if you keep taunting me I’ll throw the centerpiece at you…”

“What are you going to do? Throw the berries at me?”

She could hear Snape’s victorious snort and she felt like throwing him her plate, though that would have catched too much unwanted attention and she wasn’t going to fall into his trick to make her the center of attention of the entrance ceremony again. She grabbed one of the small berry like things from the centerpiece with the intention of throwing it at Snape, but to her surprise, hor most likely horror, the so called berry wasn’t a berry but some type of magical pill bug that uncoiles as soon as she had touched her and crawled up her hand. In the middle of her panic, she shook up her hand with far more strength that she had intended hitting twof her Hufflepuff mates and sending the bug flying; the bug knocked at the the juice bottle with a loud crash that echoed in the hall making Dumbledore stare at her with an amused smile as the bug ended up over the Hufflepuff prefect’s head..

“For Merlin’s sake, Tonks...what the hell are you doing?” her prefect said annoyed and she was sure her hair would probably be brightly purple as the bug began crawling down the Prefects face. THe girl let out a panicked screech as another Hufflepuff boy helped her take it off. As soon as the boy had grabbed the thing, the pill bug was gone and all that was left was one round, marble like fake berry. After a few minutes of awkward silence, the whole table broke into laughs.

Snape was far too amused by what she’d done when she turned to glare at him. 

“You knew it was charmed!” she mumbled accusingly “And you know I  _ hate _ pill bugs!”

“I didn’t think you’d be idiot enough to try that…”

Tonks sent him a annoyed look as the food appeared in the tables. She’d get even with him later. 

 

***

Tonks began her first week of classes as a sophomore in her most traditional form: stumbling and spending almost 80% of the time on the floor. On Friday morning, the girl was rushing in to breakfast  in the Great Hall when a certain poltergeist, pulled on her tunic causing her to stumble and crash against the benches at the Gryffindor table. It seemed that Peeves had comet to enjoy watching her in very indignant positions lately.

The students eating at the time had laughed loudly, but were quickly shut off by a glare sent by her favorite cousin and his gang. As per usual, the one to help her back on her feet had been Lupin. 

“You okay?” he asked with a frown.

“Ah...Wotcher, Remus…” she answered rubbing her waist to asses the damage. It stung but it wasn’t too bad “Yes, I’ll survive.”

“Always know how to make an entry, don’t you, cous?” Sirius smiled “Sit down, will you?”

“Ah, I think I’ll just grab it to go since I seem to be already late…” Tonks said shaking her head “You don’t happen to know a poltergeist repellent spell, do you Remus?”

“A what?”

“Peeves…”she shrugged “The damn prat has made of me stumbling into a hobby.”

“Wait...is that why you have been falling all over the castle?” Lupin asked concerned.

“Well, I’m clumsy...but not that much. Peeves keeps messing with me...I guess he finds it rather amusing…”

“That’s not alright. It is dangerous…” Lupin said shaking his head “I’ll ask dad…”

“Well, thank you. Then ...I’ll leave now. I still need to make it to Transfigurations. Wish me luck...hopefully I will make it without breaking my neck…”

She had said in a joking manner, but Lupin seemed to take the prospect with horror. 

“Maybe you shouldn’t go alone…”

“I’ll be fine. It’d be a little embarrassing if I have to go to classes with an escort…” she laughed “Anyway...so I’ll see you all later!”

Tonks picked a buttered toast from Sirius plate and left the Hall slightly limping. Lupin was watching her with worry when Sirius patted his back with a smirk. 

“What?”

“Nothing…” Sirius laughed.

Lupin quirked an eyebrow at his friend and rolled his eyes. He knew better than to expect a proper answer when Sirius entered into his “all mysterious” mode; the boy would eventually tell him what was going through his mind. He looked at the spot where Tonks had been standing at some minutes before. He could only hope that the girl would make it out from her first week unscathed. 

“She’s always so energetic, is she not?” Lily giggled “It’s quite admirable…”

“If only I had as much energy as she does in the morning…” James said. He wasn’t a morning person and after three months of sleeping in to late hours, waking up early to attend classes was giving him so issues.

“Oh, that girl is always awfully early…” Sirius replied “but I guess it’s a family thing. When I was staying with them, I was always the last one to wake up…”

“Oh, you two met her parents….” Peter said curiously “So how are they?”

“They’re nice folk. Dromeda is just as I remember her, haven’t changed a bit and her husband is great.” Sirius grinned “They were all great with me staying over and all; and you would guess, but it seems Remus’s mum and him might have known each other!”

“Really?” Lily said amazed.

Lupin nodded.

“Tonk’s father is older, but he’s Welsh as my mum. Coincidentally, they’re from the same town and attended the same muggle school. They saw each other a few times before. It wasn’t until my dad told the story of how they’d met that Mr. Tonks realized it.”

“Oh wow. That’s such a coincidence. So how’s the town she lives in? She gave me very vague descriptions when I asked…”

“Well, she doesn’t live  _ in _ a town; which makes it even better...if you ask me.” Sirius replied “ A pretty house in the countryside, with big gardens and few to none snoopy neighbors. Great place. I wouldn’t mind to spend more holidays in there…”

“They live up north. Close to the Moors.” Lupin added “Outside of town…”

“I never thought of her as a country girl…”James said resting his head on his hand “but sounds like a nice breather from London. Maybe I should join the party next time, too!”

“Somehow I think Andromeda would love that…”Sirius chuckled “she was quite happy to have people around for a change....”

“How about a full summer camp this year. I could persuade Severus to attend…” Lily smiled “He hates to travel, but he might do the effort if it is for Tonks…”

“He would, wouldn’t he?” James said with smirk “Don’t tell me Snivellus actually fancies the queen of clumsiness?”

“Wait, what?” Sirius growled and Lupin found himself listening with sudden interest. 

“Not in that way…” Lily replied glaring at James “Severus has few friends. He appreciates her even if he doesn’t admit it himself. I think he finds...likeable? That she’s so into challenging him…”

Sirius seemed horrified, but he didn’t say anything more. Lupin on the other hand was thoughtful. He had noticed that those two were quite close; maybe Snape was the third person in the group- after Sirius and himself- with whom she seemed to feel most comfortable with. The boy told himself that it was only natural considering that they had spend quite an amount of time  together doing those small jobs with Slughorn. It was a good thing that she was making friends -other friends besides himself- then why was he feeling a little irritated by James’s silly remark about Snape and Tonks closeness? 

 

They didn’t see Tonks again until much later that day. The girl had skipped lunch  and her whereabouts were unknown until mid afternoon, when classes were over and they were free for the day. The group stumbled with her as she climbed down the stairs to the courtyard and Lupin noticed that her limping seemed a little worse than earlier.

“Tonks!” he called her once she had properly stepped into the courtyard. The last thing he wanted was to startled her in the middle of the stairs and provoke her another fall.

The girl turned to them looking miserable and Lupin felt a knot in his throat.

“Oh...wotcher…” she said with a sigh.

“Woah….what’s up with that face?”  Sirius said blinking worriedly “what did you break?”

At the question Tonks let out miserable groan.

“Ooookaaay. For real ...what’s wrong?”

“Peeves…” she replied simply.

“What did he do?” Lupin asked her worried.

“Well…”

But before she could answer, a group of giggling second year Ravenclaws stopped by pointing at her between laughs and mutterings. Tonks let out a loud sigh and putting her arms on her hips in a, supposedly dignified pose, she turned to them with a firm face.

“Oh, okay...snap out of it. It was a damn accident! So fly off and do something more productive than stand there gossiping about me!”she growled angrily at the girls who stared at her with wide eyes and quickly rushed away.

“Wow cous” Sirius whistled “You really scared them off. So...what was an accident?”

Tonks turned back to them. The spark of hardness and anger in her face quickly dissolved, and the same miserable look she’d held before the Ravenclaws interruption took over once more. 

“I told you that Peeves was making me trip as a hobby...well he did it again when I was coming out from charms and I kind of hit one of the magical armors when I went down. I don’t what was wrong with the thing, but it went crazy thinking someone was attacking it and well...it hit that stupid statue of the druid.”

“You mean the one that is reading that big book?” James asked.   
“Yeah, that one. The armor hit it with its rusted sword and the druid dropped that book over…over...”   
“Over?” Lupin coarsed her.

“....Mrs. Norris…”

There was a long silent pause  that was suddenly broken by Sirius bark laugh followed by James and Peter’s giggles and guilty chuckle from Lupin. The boys were actually relieved; the miserable look and the paleness in the younger girls had made them think that something worse had happened. 

“It’s not fun! Filch was furious. I had to stand his yells for two and half hours before professor Sprout came looking for me!”

“And what happened to Mrs. Norris…?” James asked trying to drown his laugh.

“Well...she’s alive, if that’s what you’re asking. But she might lose a piece of her tail…” Tonks sighed “ And hey, the cat might be a pain, but...it doesn’t make me feel any less guilty.  Now Filch is demanding that I to get detention for the rest of the year…”

“What? Why? It’s not like you hexed Mrs. Norris.” Sirius asked with a frown, but he couldn’t stop himself from laughing. The whole situation was so ridiculous “I mean...you just tripped....”

“Well, Filch thinks I did it on purpose….and since he can’t actually punish Peeves, I am the scapegoat...” Tonks said sighed “I really don’t mind the detention, if I really had done something. The whole thing was just a chain of unfortunate events!”

“He’s not a teacher. He can’t put you on detention” Lupin reasoned resting his hand on her shoulder “I doubt professor Sprout would give into Filch’s demands. She knows you wouldn’t have done that…”

“Well, yeah...that’s what Professor Sprout told me. She said I shouldn’t worry, that she’d talk to Dumbledore and that it was unfair to punish me for an accident. But Filch isn’t happy…I’m pretty sure he’s going to make the rest of my school life a nightmare if I don’t get that detention…”

“That old rat…” Sirius said crossing his arms “Well, if he’s going to put you through hell...I’m sure we can put him through hell as well…”

“We all know how much he hates students anyway…” James nodded “If he bothers you we can...leave him a present?”

“Besides...what’s the big deal. I am sure Madam Pomfrey can fix that cat’s tail in a blink “Peter said.

Tonks bit her lip in a gesture that Lupin now knew meant she was concerned. He rubbed her back comfortingly and smiled at her.

“Don’t worry about it. Professor Dumbledore wouldn’t be that unreasonable. I’m sure of it. You missed lunch, didn’t you?”

“I was stuck in Filch’s office…” she shrugged “And honestly, with all that mess I kind of lost my appetite…”

“Well, but you need to eat something. Come on...we were planning on doing a small picnic outside. How about you join us…?” Lupin offered.

“And mess up with your Boys’ hang out? I wouldn’t dare…” Tonks replied shaking her head “I think I’ll just go back to my room. I’m tired. I will see you guys later.”

With that said, Tonks said goodbye to them with a gesture of her hand and walked away as fast as her  slight limp allowed. Lupin watched her disappear among a group of students and he felt Sirius and James rest their elbows on his shoulders. He still wondered why those two enjoyed doing that considering that he was several inches taller and the position was probably uncomfortable.

“Well...there she goes. Do you reckon she’d start every year with an injury? Because lat year she rolled down a hill…” James said slightly amused “She shouldn’t take it on as a habit. I like her, and I certainly would prefer if she survives her school life…”

“Yeah, but considering what Dromeda told me of her, she’s already used to get all knocked over…” SIrius chuckled “Clumsiest thing ever...that one...adorable, though...don’t you think, Moony?”

“Yeah...adorable…” he replied absently “I mean...it is cute, as long as she doesn’t get that hurt. I’m worried that Peeves will continue to sabotage her…”

“Oh, yes...that, too. Well...any ideas of how to control a damn poltergeist, Mr. DADA ace?”

“No idea, but I’m going to owl my dad as soon as possible. I don’t like to see her getting hurt…” Lupin sighed “What…?”

Sirius was grinning amused at him. 

“Nope, nothing. Come on...I want to get out of this castle for a while…” he answered turning around and walking away. 

Lupine frowned, intrigued by his friend's behavior, but decided to ignore him as he followed the rest of the group out.

  
  


***

Tonks was feeling ill. She had originally intended to get into her dorm and nap the rest of the day, but the Hufflepuff house was crawling with students and after the events from earlier she wasn’t feeling in the mood of gossipers and mocks. She had twisted her ankle on her fall and even though she knew that Madam Pomfrey would fix it in a blink, she didn’t feel like hearing the nurse’s lecture regarding her inability to stay in her feet. 

That’s how she’d ended up in the library, curled in her favorite seat in the Muggle LIterature section with  her ankle swollen and stinging and a pretty strong headache.

“First year a fracture hip; second year a twisted ankle…” she muttered to herself “well, I guess it’s getting better…”

At least she could enjoy some peace and quiet in there; and she certainly enjoyed the chance of reading a good book in her free hours, however, after a few minutes, she found herself drifting off into sleep.

Her sleep was light, but filled with dreams. Strange dreams that made her heart beat heavily. She saw a group of redheads, most of the male, with kind smiles; she saw a boy with glasses that reminded her of James and a girl with honey colored hair. She saw a lot of faces that felt familiar, but she could not name. She also saw a green symbol in the sky: a skull with a snake coming from its mouth. The images were scattered, not exactly connected to each other, yet somehow related. It was confusing and yet comforting, unlike other dreams she’d had.

_ You can change it all. If that’s what you really want… _

Her eyes fluttered open as the words vanished into the deeps of her mind. She felt a warm heaviness on her shoulders that she didn’t recall having before falling asleep. It was a robe, more precisely, a Gryffindor robe judging by the scarlet and gold lines in the rim and if her senses didn’t fail her, the scent of chocolate, tea and mint was something she could easily recognize.

“Remus?” she said still half asleep. 

The boy was sitting in his usual spot with a book open in front of his face. He turned to her as he heard his name being called and his green eyes stared at her gently.

“Hey…” he replied putting down the book.

“ What are you doing here…?”

“I could ask you the same. Didn’t you say you were going to you dorm?”

“I...tried, but it was too noisy…”

“Noisy?”

“My head hurts…” she replied. The pain seemed to be slightly stronger and she was beginning to feel nauseous. 

Lupin looked at he conflicted. He raised from his seat and came to kneel in front of her. Soon his hand was resting over her forehead. 

“You might be having a slight fever. I saw you trembling, that’s why I gave you my robe. Are you feeling sick?”

_ Yes. _

_ “ _ No, it’s just a  headache…”

“Are you sure? Maybe I should take you to madam Pomfrey.”

“The last thing I need is her lectures, Remus…” she half snorted “I am okay. I just need to sleep it off…”

“Then wouldn’t it be better if you went back to your room?”

“I told you...too noisy…” 

Lupin sat down next to her concerned. It was obvious that he wasn’t convinced that sleeping in a reading chair in the library could be better than her warm  bed, so Tonks pushed herself up and rested her head on his shoulder. 

“There...it won’t be that bad for my posture like this…” 

“I doubt my shoulder is more comfortable than a pillow, Tonks…” 

“Then I can use your lap...just don’t make go to my room. It’s not comfortable…”

Lupin seemed to ponder it, but he eventually gave in.

“Alright, you can use my lap. That has to be better than my shoulder.”

And- she had to admit it- it was. Lupin was still too tall for her so his shoulder felt a little too high, his lap however was nice: soft and warm. She could get used to it.

Lupin watched the girl drift back to sleep with her head resting comfortably on his lap. Her hood had fallen down a little and he could see  the locks of her purple hair that, after a few minutes of sleeping, had turned its points into pastel pink, crating a slight gradient. Unconsciously, he found himself caressing one of the wavy locks. 

So that was what she tried to hide under her hood, he thought. He had read about her little gift, but he had never seen it, and as he watched her singular hair between his fingers, he couldn’t help but think that it was a beautiful. THe way the hair turned from a shade to another so naturally that it reminded him of the petals of a flower. It was such a pity that she didn’t let others see it, considering how lovely it was. He would hex anyone who would dare say otherwise.

Tonks sleep quietly. At least she seemed to be  having a pleasant rest and Lupin’s lips curled into a smile. He had picked his book, but somehow he found himself too distracted to read it. His attention was all over the sleeping girl: from her lovely color changing hair to the quiet raise and low of her breathing. He pulled  his robe up to her shoulders and sat there watching her sleep. The book was long forgotten on the table.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah young love...  
> I wasn't sure if having Remus crushing over Tonks at 13 years old would be too soon, but a friend told me her first crush was at that age so...  
> besides, Lupin is just falling into the Tonks charm again, so things should be a little faster than in the original TL.  
> Also....I just love doing Tonks and Snapes buddy relationship.   
> Snape deserved some love, all he needed was someone nice (and stubborn) to pester him with it lol


	12. Dreams or not dreams

"They've promised that dreams can come  true - but forgot to mention that nightmares are dreams, too."    
— Oscar Wilde

 

Tonks was always a healthy girl. Her mother had told her that she rarely got sick when she was a baby and Tonks couldn’t recall ever being sick when she grew older. Injured was another story, of course, but sick was never and issue.

So it was actually pretty new -and terrifying- for her to experiment the symptoms of an unexplainable illness. Symptoms weren’t constant, she didn’t have them all the time, and they usually began at nightfall. She would feel ill, weak and awfully nauseous most likely because of the headaches that threatened to make her head burst. The symptoms seemed to escalate whenever she was bombarded with her strange nightmares of unknown people wearing mask and black robes and snakes. Sometimes she’d wake up covered in sweat and would have to run into the bathroom to throw up whatever was left in her stomach.

It wasn’t the first time she had this kind of dreams, but she had never had the sickness problem, before. She’d been able to keep it under cover for a while, but after a few weeks, the strain of it began to pull a toll on her body. She felt airheaded, sometimes a little too weak and clumsier than usual. However, thanks to her abilities, she could easily swipe away any physical sign of illness. None of her friends had noticed her subtle change in vitality; well, at least most of them. Lupin seemed to suspect something wasn’t quite right about her and even though he wouldn’t say it straight away, she knew the boy was keeping a careful eye on her.  He kept bringing her small bits of chocolate whenever they were close and he would often ask her how she was feeling. That, actually, made her feel a little guilty, as the boy seemed to be feeling ill himself. The last few days, he had gotten paler, and his smile was faint. 

The second person to notice was Snape. Not that he was so concerned about her as Lupin, but rather because he had noticed a slight change in attitude during their extracurricular activities with Slughorn. He hadn’t asked, instead he had made a sharp remark of her not being annoyingly noisy as usual,  but she had brushed it off saying that she was just a little stressed with her school chores.

When the full moon came, Tonks was happier and a little more energetic. She still felt sick and worn, in fact, it seemed to have gotten even worse; but there was a chance that she’d see Mr. Wolfie after three long months of absence and she was more than happy to see her favorite little wolf. 

Tonks sneaked out of the Hufflepuff cellar with a little less ease than usual; her body sudden weakness was making her three times clumsier and she had to double her efforts to avoid causing too much noise. Reaching her usual spot in the school grounds wasn’t easy either; her legs were wobbly and they felt like they could barely hold her weight anymore, so it wasn’t a surprise that she had literally collapsed over the rock were she usually sat down waiting for Mr. Wolfie.

Her breathing was heavy and she was feeling unnaturally cold even though the night was quite warm. She closed her eyes and was waiting for the sensation of spinning to pass, when she sensed something furry nudging her side.

“Wotcher, Mr. Wolfie…”she smiled opening her eyes. She found his amber eyes staring at her with something that could only be expressed as concern, but she stretched her hand scratched the back of his ears trying to ease him “I’ve been a little sick. It’s probably just a cold. Did you miss me, Mr. Wolfie? I thought of you the whole summer...”

Mr. Wolfie only stared at her. He sat on his hind legs and stared at her in a way that reminded her of a dog despite his ferocious look. Tonks pushed herself in a sitting position.

“I am afraid I won’t be able to join you for a stroll, Mr. Wolfie. MY legs felt worse than that jelly dessert, that was served in lunch today. I don’t think I’ll be able to keep up with your pace. Don’t worry, I’m sure you are probably in need of a hunt. I’ll wait for you in here…”

Despite her words the wold did not move. Instead it nudged her with his muzzle and sniffed her in a somewhat affectionate gesture. It moved to lay behind her, allowing Tonks to rest against his warm fur. 

“So you noticed I was cold?” she giggled “It’s silly, considering the night is warm, but I feel better like this. Thank you.”

The wolf let out a sigh and rested his head on his paws while tonks curled against him in a comfortable position.

“How was you summer? My summer was really nice. My cousin and my friend Remus came to visit and it was wonderful. I don’t remember having so much fun during summer…” she chuckled “My first weeks of school haven’t been great, though. I kind of ...mutilated the caretaker’s cat...but it was completely on accident!”

The wolf let out a soft growl that she could have easily taken as a snort.

“ Then it seems I caught a cold. I haven’t been feeling that good the past few days and I’ve been having a lot of nightmares. Do you have nightmares, too?

The wolf raised his head to look at her.

”They aren’t a big deal, but I have had them since I was young. Always the same images. Sometimes I see one or two new ones, but the feelings are always the same. I really can’t explain it but...they always make me anxious.” she said absently as she petted the wolf “It’s not...exactly terrifying...you know? It’s too hard to explain, and honestly, I don’t know why I’m telling you this, it’s not like you’ll be interested in our human complicated ways anyway.” she laughed.

Tonks stared at the sky as she began to feel a little sleepy. She felt so comfortable curled against her furry friend; somehow, his presence was calming and it made her feel safe and protected.  Before she even knew it, she’d drifted off into a calm nightmare less sleep. 

 

***

Lupin woke up the following morning feeling slightly different. At first he couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was exactly, but then he realized that unlike past Full Moons, his body didn’t seemed to be in that much pain, and he wasn’t as drained as he usually was after a transformation. The wariness and the exhaustition of his strained muscles were still there, but compared to what he was used to, it was a hundred times better. 

Feeling considerably better than past transformations, he made his way to the hospital wing for his routinary check up with Madam Pomfrey. THe hospital wing was one of the few places is Hogwarts that was usually empty. Who would hang around the hospital unless you needed to, after all? But to his surprise, when he pushed the door to the hospital wing, he found the mediwitch talking to someone. It seemed that he wouldn’t be the only person who woke up feeling “indisposed” that morning. 

“Well, Ms. Tonks. I’m afraid I can’t find anything wrong with you, except  dehydration and mild exhaustition. Have you been sleeping well? It’s a little too early in the school year to be pulling off overnights…” 

“I’ve been having problems to sleep some nights, but it isn’t a big thing, but that shouldn’t be making me sick, should it?”

The nurse crossed her arms in thought. She could tell that Tonks wasn’t lying. The girl wasn’t making up an excuse to skip classes. The paleness in her face and evident inability to keep anything in her stomach for longer than 5 minutes couldn’t be so well faked; but she had examined the girl, and she had found no signs of an evident disease.

“Alright. You should stay in bed for the day. I will get you something for the headache and the nausea.  Do you think you might be able to eat down something?”

Tonks shook her head. She was pretty sure she’d end up throwing  up if she tried.

“Oh, well. A vigorising potion, too, then…”

Madam Pomfrey turned around and it was then that she noticed Lupin’s shy presence at the door.

“Oh, Mr. Lupin. Come in. I’ll be with you in a minute. I’ll just fetch the potions for Ms. Tonks. Please take seat…”

Lupin walked to the bed next to where Tonks was curled under the sheets and sat down. She had cocooned herself between the pale sheets and he could see that she was trembling pretty badly.

“Wotcher…” she said softly peeping, shyly, from under the sheet. “You caught a bug, too, Remus?”

“I don’t think it is as bad as yours…” he said worried. “I knew something wasn’t quite right with you. I should have made you see Madam Pomfrey earlier….”

Tonks shook her head and chuckled. Lupin nobility was simply too much sometimes.

“It wouldn’t have made much difference. She’s completely sure that I am not sick.”

Lupin quirked his eyebrow. Even he could see she was in bad shape and he wasn’t a mediwitch.

“Though...I am actually feeling a little better and look at the bright side. I get to have your company…”

Lupin smiled. As usual, Tonks could see the bright side to anything. Madam Pomfrey came back with three bottles of potion and made Tonks drink them all, before turning to Lupin. She closed the curtains around his bed and began to assess the damage for that month. She seemed quite satisfied by the fact that it wasn’t as bad as usual. The witch cast a few healing spells and gave him a pain potion before telling him the usual lecture of bed and rest for the rest of the day.

“Since your friend is here for the rest of the day, you might as well stay in here.”  Madam Pomfrey said tilting her head at Tonks “Keep an eye on her for me. I can’t trust this girl won’t fall from her bed and break her wrist or something worse…”

Lupin smiled; that sounded like something that could actually happen to her. The boy nodded and sat back in the small hospital bed as the nurse walked away.

“So...do you reckon Filch casted a curse on me as payback for mutilating Mrs. Norris?” 

Lupin snorted.Tonks was still hiding under the bed covers and would occasionally peep out to see if he was still there.    
“I doubt it. Filch is a squib after all. “ Lupin shrugged “Why are you hiding under the sheets?”

“Madam Pomfrey made me take off my hoodie…” she replied. Only her face was visible between the white sheets, and Lupin couldn’t help but think that her face was almost the same color of the fabric. The usual pink of her cheeks was long lost under her tired face.

“I’m sure you’re looking alright.” Lupin replied. 

“Nope...It makes me look peaky…”she said with a pout. It wasn’t a lie; her hair had turned into a sickly shade of gray.

“So...how long have you been feeling ill?” Lupin asked restingting his head on his hand.

“Three days maybe? It got pretty bad last night. I’m not sure how I made it ba….made it here, this morning.”

Truth was, Lupin remembered a few bits. He remembered the wolf watching over a sleeping Tonks; when dawn began to approach, he nudge the girl awake. She was looking pretty ill and the wolf had managed to help her back to the castle, but how had she gotten to Hufflepuff dorms- if she went there at all - or the hospital wing, he had no idea. 

“But I think I’m feeling much better now…” she said with a smile.

“Are you sure?” 

“Yup...I’m a tough girl, like a proper Hufflepuff.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that…” Lupin chuckled “We should enjoy the peace while it last. Once the classes end, I’m sure Sirius and the other’s will be invading the hospital wing.”

“Oh, Madam Pomfrey is going to get so annoyed…” Tonks snikered “hopefully my headache will be all gone for then…”

“Do you usually get headaches?”

“Not really. Only when I have nightmares, actually…”

“So...you’ve been having nightmares recently?”

He already knew the answer to that question from the bits he could remember from his werewolf form, but he wanted her to tell  _ him.  _

_ “ _ Yes. I have…” Tonks sighed “Pretty frequently the past few days actually, maybe that is why I feel a little sick.”

“Can I ask what about?”

Tonks seemed to ponder what to say. 

“Well, I don’t know. It’s not like it has a plot or anything…” she replied “It’s like I’m watching many different scenes, with many different people that I feel like I should know, but then again, I can’t seem to recognize. The images aren’t scary or anything, but...they make me feel uneasy; restless and sometimes awfully sad. Have you ever had that kind of dreams?”

The truth was, he didn’t. His nightmares were usually more violent and they usually involved him, in his werewolf form, attacking and killing the people he cared about. 

“I can’t say I have…” he said thoughtfully “My nightmares are...I don’t know. Maybe scary isn’t enough to describe it…”   
“Really? Why? What do you dream about?”

Lupin hesitated. He hadn’t spoken of his nightmares to anyone, not even his parents; but Tonks was was always honest to him, and he felt like he owed her that much.

“...I always dream that I’m...hurting people. People I cared a lot about. Sometimes I wake up and I can smell the blood...it’s horrifying.”

Tonks looked at him and out of sudden she got down from her bed and walked to his. Unfortunately she got tangled between the sheets of her improvised hooded robe and stumbled her way to his bed knocking a glass of water from the night table. Despite the cramping muscles, Lupin’s reflexes were still sharp from the transformation and he managed to catch the girl before she could hurt herself.

“Well, guess sick or not sick, I’m still a klutz.” she snickered climbing on to the bed with his help “ And here I thought I could come and give you a comforting hug...guess I totally ruined the mood and the intention.”

“Not at all...the intention is still valid…” Lupin chuckled “do I still get the hug?”

“Do you still want it?”

Lupin shrugged and the girl gave him a warm yet slightly weak hug. The boy could tell that the girl stamina wasn’t on its top.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be able to be there when you wake up from one of those nightmares, but ...whenever you do, imagine a ghostly me hugging you like this and telling you that, whatever that dream makes you feel, you’re not like that. You wouldn’t hurt anyone on your own free will…”

Lupin smiled faintly and then he realized that she had said something that he hadn’t expected. Usually, he’d had expected the usual “It’s just a dream. You’re a good boy, you’ll never harm anyone…”; people would say that because they didn’t know what he was, but Tonks hadn’t. She had clearly said: _ You wouldn’t hurt anyone on your own free will. _

“My free will…?”

“I’m not naive enough to think you’ll never hurt anyone, Remus. Humans will always hurt others in one way or another. However,  I’m sure if you would never hurt someone willingly…especially not in the way you dream about….”

“You have more faith in me than myself…” Lupin chuckled, but somehow, Tonks words made him feel better in more ways that he could ever express. 

“Maybe...maybe not. I just know you’re not the kind of person who would purposely enjoy hurting others…”

“And how do you know that?”

“Your eyes aren’t the eyes of killer, they’re gentle and  sweet. Those are the eyes of a caretaker.”

“Are you telling me this so that I’ll feel better?”

“Nope, I’m telling you exactly what I think. So next time you wake up thinking you killed someone, remember me, will you?” she said winking at him. 

Lupin smiled and  nodded. Tonks giggled softly before getting of from his bed and getting back to hers. She barely managed to walk over without tripping again and Lupin couldn’t stop himself from thinking about how cute she was. 

“Well, that’s better. I wouldn’t want Madam Pomfrey to get mad at me from bothering another patient…”

“It should be I who gets her anger. As far as I’m concerned, you’re the sick one here…” he said apologetically “I should let you sleep…”

“Nah, how could sleep when I’m enjoying your company so much?”

 

Lupin couldn’t have agreed more and contrary to Madam Pomfrey’s command, they spent most of their “resting” time talking. She would tell him about things about her home; the little games she had come up with during childhood to fend off boredom and the things she did when she was alone in Hogwarts; he would tell her the stories his mother used to tell him as a child, the places he had visited with his father and the little things that he’d take her to see next year, when she finally got permission to visit Hogsmeade. With his company, Tonks began to feel a lot better and by noon, her headache and the nausea was practically gone. 

At lunch time, the hospital wing was invaded by Sirius, James and Peter who had dragged almost half of Gryffindor’s lunch to eat with them. Tonks had appreciated the gesture, but with her current state, the smell of food was quickly making her nauseous again. Lupin had eaten a little, but his appetite was usually a little low after the full moon so he wasn’t really concerned. 

The Gryffindor boys returned later in the evening accompanied by Lily and a reluctant Snape, who didn’t think twice to shower her with rude remarks about her being too idiotic to not know when to get medical attention if she was feeling wrong. Any other person would have considered it offensive, but Tonks only grinned and told him with a cheerful smile that it was cute of him to get over worked concerning her health. Snape had rolled his eyes in horror and mumbled something that sounded like “who said I was concerned?” causing Lily to laugh and Sirius to say that he’d never imagined Snape to be worried about a Hufflepuff’s well being. 

The lively groupe would have stayed over for a improvised sleepover if Madam Pomfrey hadn’t shown up to kick them out mumbling about inconsiderate visitors that wouldn’t allow the sick patients rest. 

Lupin and Tonks had exchanged amused looks; the girl gave him a lovely smile knowing that he could have left along with them, but since he was also a patient of sorts, he had decided to stay the night to make her company.  Madam POmfrey gave the girl a Dreamless Potion and that night Tonks fell deeply asleep in a quiet and calm sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little more Tonks and Lupin interactions!


	13. All it takes is...a bulb?

"When you trip over love, it is easy to get up. But when you fall in love, it is impossible to stand again." 

—  **Albert Einstein**

 

Tonks spent two days in the hospital wing before Madam Pomfrey considered that the girl was in conditions to leave which was translated in the girl eating down her breakfast and not basically throwing up. Tonks sickness was gone almost as suddenly as if had came and soon she was back on her feet and stumbling around as if she’d never been sick at all.

Sirius who had been concerned about her cousin’s little fall off health soon forgot all about it; it wasn’t much of hi habit to stay worried for two long after all, but unlike him, Lupin was still a little to overly worried about her even when she assured him that she was all good.

The boy would constantly be asking her how she felt and made sure that she ate a reasonable amount of food on each meal, making quite a fuss if the girl said she didn’t have much of an appetite. This had ended up causing Sirius and James joke around saying that if they didn’t knew better, they’d would think that the taller boy was an “Overprotective boyfriend.”  At this, Tonks would laugh saying that Lupin was way too good for anyone to ever considered her as his love interest and Sirius would flick her on her forehead and tell her she was way too dense if she thought like that.

 

“Honestly, that girl spends too much time in the ground if she hasn’t noticed…” Sirius said one afternoon when they were sitting in their dorm room eating some of the snacks they had sneaked from Hogsmeade.

“Notice what?” Lupin asked as he took a sip from his butterbeer bottle and flicked the page of his book.

“That you totally fancy her…”

At the comment Lupin choked with his butterbeer, sending him into a miserable wave of coughing and earning a smirk of Sirius who stood triumphantly above the giggles of James and Peter.

“W-what?”

“Come one, mate. You know I’m right.”

“Sirius...I don’t….she’s 12 years old!” Lupin said wishing hoping that the wave of heat and the obvious blush in his face was due to his near choking experience. 

“So what? You’re 13, next year she’ll be the age we are now and completely dateable…” Sirius shrugged “Come on. I totally approve this relationship, ain’t I right fellas?”

“Honestly...I like her. I don’t reckon she’d be one of those annoying over clingy girls…” James agreed “and she’s up for some goof...which is always good.”

“Good sense of humor and clever…” Sirius said counting with his fingers “same weird hobbies as yours and most importantly, she wouldn’t care about your monthly issue…”

Lupin stared at his friends as if they were crazy.

“Moony...we know you. I’m you  _ do fancy _ Sirius crazy cousin…” James smiled “It’s not a bad thing. I mean….you all know I fancy Evans…”

“And that she can’t stand you…” Peter smirked.

“It’s gotten better! Another reason for me to like, Tonksie…” the boy with glasses smiled.

“Once more...she’s 12!” Lupin said.

“Oh, Moony….you do realize you’re not denying it, right?”

“I…” he began, but when his three friends looked at him with a smirk,he knew it was a lost battle. Besides he had to come to terms with the fact that his friends weren’t completely wrong. Perhaps he did fancy Tonks...a little “Is it that obvious?” 

“Now...we are talking…” Sirius grinned “Well, no really. Only to us at least, since that rock head of my cousin doesn’t seem to notice; but you know? I think you have a pretty good chance with her, because whether she knows it or not, it’s pretty obvious she’s quite smitten with you….”

“She’s just being nice.”

“Fat chance, mate…” James shook his head “She’s nice to me and Peter; to you, she has a preferential treatment.”

“That’s not true…”

But Lupin realized it was. Tonks was always friendly to James and Peter, but her attitude was always cordial; with Sirius she was more playful, just the way a younger sister would be trying to rub an older brother to get what she wanted and with him...what description could he give it?

“No, I’m a werewolf. THere’s no way she’ll like that. Even if she did liked me right now...as soon as she finds out what I am…”

“Might not change a thing…” Sirius reasoned “Don’t forget that she’s rather unpartial in favor to werewolves, Moony.”

“Werewolf lover, that one. Too much of a coincidence? Maybe your status will make you more attractive…” James winked at him.

Lupin rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t help but wonder if his friends could be right. What if Tonks really did not care about his...little issue? 

 

The thought kept haunting him the next few days. His friends had been kind enough to not mention the subject until he had  _ made his mind,  _ but they kept giving him significant looks whenever Tonks showed up at their table using the excuse to chat to randomly slip a chocolate in Lupin’s pocket. It wasn’t until after five days that Lupin came to a conclusion: he  _ was _ smitten with the young Hufflepuff witch. 

“Wotcher, Remus!” 

Lupin stopped in his tracks and turned on his heels. Tonks walked to him, but before she had managed to reach him, a group of first year Gryffindors ran at her making the girl wobble and almost fall to the floor and  Lupin rushed to grab her by the waist, to keep her from falling face to the ground.

“Those little rascals!” she groaned when Lupin helped her  up “Isn’t there some kind of Not RUnning in the hallways rule?”

“Not sure. You might as well make one when you become prefect.” he chuckled.

“Me? Hah...I’ll never make it to prefect, but you might as well do it when you’re one.” Tonks snorted “Do it for me?”

“What makes you think I’ll be prefect?”

“Oh...it is hunch…” she smiled “Where are you going now?”

“Well, I’m free and since SIrius and Peter decided to sneak out catch some caterpillars for one of their pranks and James is too busy trying to persuade Lily to help him with charms, I thought I’d go out for some outdoor reading.”

“Oh...is it a lonely wolf plan or do you fancy some company?” she smiled. 

Lupin chuckled. THere she was, using wolf metaphors again. In the last few days, he’d been paying special attention to the girl, and he noticed that she used lots of wolf metaphors unconsciously. 

“Oh, I’d love your company…” he smiled “If you don’t get too bored to be with me, of course?”

“Bored? With you? Please. I love hanging out with you and you know that!” 

“You’re saying it to make me feel better.” 

“No, I’m not…” she laughed interlacing her arm with his; a gesture that made him a little numb “What are you reading?”

Lupin tried to ignore the warmth he was feeling in his arm and showed her the book he was holding.  

“Alice in wonderland! I love that book…” she smiled “I always told my mum that the Queen of Hearts reminded me of my aunt...”

“Which one?”

“Bellatrix. She seems like the kind of person who would stand a say : Off with his/her head!”

“I’ve never met her…” Lupin replied “but Sirius did say she was quite unpleasant.”

“I haven’t met her either;  but dad say she was quite a handful.”

“So...if your aunt is the Queen of Hearts…” Lupin said thoughtfully “That’d make you...Alice?”

“Oh, nifllers. Do you reckon I’ll look nice being blond?”

“I’m pretty sure you’ll look pretty With any color ...actually.”

“Even… if it was like bright pink?”

“Yes, why not? It’s different, but pink might look good on you.”

“You’re such a gentleman, Remus…”she giggled “so if I get to be Alice, what will you be? Let’s think….how about the White Rabbit?”

A white rabbit was the last thing he’d have ever associate himself with, but he couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Am I that pompous?”

“No, but  I think the guiding role suits you well. What would it be of Sirius and company without you, after all? And you’re always there to help me, just the way the White Rabbit helps Alice, so, if I have to be Alice, you have to be my White Rabbit...”

“Alright...it’s a deal. So how about the other characters…?”

“Ohhh...Sirius and James would do amazing as the Mad Hatter and the March Hare…”

“Somehow I can picture them like that…”Lupin agreed and laughed “I guess peter could be the dormouse. He does have fondness for rodents…”

“Ooooh….Severus could totally be the caterpillar! Both of them are grumpy and rude, but well intentioned.”

“He is quite like him...yes.”

“Lily could be the Duchess haha…”

“Ah the duchess…” 

By the time Lupin and Tonks had reached the first one’s favorite reading spot, the had pretty much created their own version of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland which they had called Tonks’s  Mischievous Adventures is Hogwarts. The pair laughed trying to come up with silly verses that could match the originals.

“There I thought I heard something familiar voices…” a cocky voice whispered behind them.

Sirius stood there with Peter. His hair was messed up and covered with leaves and branches, and there were spots of mud all over his robes.

“Wotcher, Sirius...were you trying to reconnect with nature?”

“Ha...almost. We were hunting for acid spitting caterpillars to send in a cute anonymous present to  Boreas and company…”

“Did you find any?” Lupin asked.

“Hah...We found a full nest!”Peter laughed “Big and fat…want to see?”

“Ug...I pass. I have nothing against them, but I don’t want to get all covered in acid.” Tonks said shaking her head.

“Point taken…” Sirius agreed “Do I interrupt your little date?”

Lupin rolled his eyes. Trust Sirius to be discrete.

“Oh...perhaps you were. Remus and I were having a very important discussion…” Tonks said giggling “Weren’t we, Remus?”

“Oh, of course we were…”

“Reaaally? And what was this discussion about?” Sirius asked curiously.

Lupin and Tonks exchanged looks and laughed. 

“Well...we were debating why is a raven like a writing desk...”

Sirius stared at them dumbfounded.

“What? You aren’t serious?”

“Oh, we are…”Lupin chuckled “very….”

“Is this some sort of transfiguration question?” Peter asked. 

They had to admit that Peter question was actually valid. McGonagall could probably turn a raven into a writing  desk in a blink, but that wasn’t the answer of the riddle.

“No...this is a muggle related question…” she laughed “So no magic is involved…”

“Well...I know nothing about muggles…” Sirius shrugged “Is this what you talk about whenever you’re alone?”

“No. Sometimes we plot against you, too….”

“Now that’s not cute cous…” Sirius smirked “and Moony...you’re supposed to be my best mate!”

“Well, Sirius. Sometimes I need to get payback for your teases, too.”

“So you choose  _ him _ over me, cous? I’m hurt…”

“Aw...I love you,Sirius; but I’m loyal to Remus in this case…” she laughed.

“Loyal to him huh?” Sirius said throwing Lupin a knowing look. 

Lupin sighed and looked away.

“So...how exactly are you planning to deliver that present?” he asked.

“Ah...changing topics, aren’t we?” Sirius said grinning at Lupin “Well, as you wish. It’s a  _ very _ clever plan…”

“I thought that the value of a plan was only worthy if someone else said it was clever…” Tonks said looking at Lupin.

“In normal cases, yes.”

“Well, to  _ your _ information. It wasn’t me who said it was clever, it was Peter…”

“Oh...now I see. So tell us what’s this awesome plan of yours, my beloved cousin?”

“Heh, Boreas has the bad habit of picking things that aren’t his...so...we will just leave it in Slytherin common room.”

“And how exactly are you planning to leave it there?” Lupin asked crossing his arms.

“Ah...with help of a Slytherin, of course…”

Tonks and Lupin exchanged looks. The only Slytherin they knew that was in accepting terms  with Sirius was...

“Severus agreed to help you?” Tonks asked surprised. 

“Well, he agreed to leave the box in Slytherin common room. That’s all…”

“I can’t believe it. Severus is helping  _ you _ in a prank?”

“Hey, it seems Snivellus thinks Boreas is an arse, too. The bloke deserves a good lesson…”

“Wow, that’s a rather unexpected turn of events…” Lupin smiled “Who would have thought.”

“I know, right?” Sirius nodded “Even I was surprised he agreed…”

“Well, that’s going to be interesting…” Tonks said tilting her head.

“It will. Anyway, I’ll leave you to your things. Have fun…” Sirius grinned blinking at his friend and walked away with Peter.

Tonks looked as the pair walked away with a frown. She then turned to Lupin and shrugged.

“He’s so strange sometimes…”

“You have no idea…”

“Well...let’s not mind him. How about you read me some passages from the book?”

“You want me to read?”

“Yes, I like to hear you read.”

Lupin smiled a little embarrassed. He didn’t know that.

“Alright...I hope you won’t fall asleep through it and end up having funny dreams about white rabbits and roses…”

“And Sirius and James putting Peter’s head into a teapot?”

“That, too.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll stay away from Mad Hatters, March Hares and Dormice. I’ll stick to the white rabbit…”

Lupin smiled. He opened the book and began to read.

 

***

“Alright for some serious talk, boys and no pun intended…” Sirius grinned that evening in the dorm.

“What about?” Lupin asked without lifting his look from his book.

“Moony, we gave you time to think...have you come to a conclusion?”

Lupin rolled his eyes. Sirius was being over dramatic about the whole thing, but he saw both James and Peter staring at him expectantly.

“ What?”

“You know what we mean…” James chuckled “Starts with “T” ends with “onks”...or should I say starts with “N” and ends in “ymphadora”?”

“Only if you want her to kick your arse…” Peter laughed.

“Boys...focus…” Sirius said, but his grin betrayed him “So...Moony?”

Lupin put down his book and sighed. There was no way out this. If he denied it they’d pester him till his death, and if acknowledged it, too. So he might as well be honest with his friends.

“Okay...you are right. I might...fancy Tonks a little…”

“Just a little?”

“Alright, fine. May more than a little, happy now?”

“Well, that’s a improvement.” James nodded “Next is trying to get her…”

“Wait, what?”

“Never mind, Moony. Compared to me, I’m sure you’ll have it easy. Lily still thinks I am annoying…” James smiled “Tonks already idolizes you, so it shouldn’t be to hard…”

“And you can be sure we will help…” Sirius smiled.

Lupin covered his face with his hand. In what kind of crazy mess had he gotten himself into?

“Do I have to remind you...she’s 12?”

“Do I have to remind you that there’s no age for love? Besides...that girl is way too clever for a 12 years old…”

Lupin had to admit that Sirius was right. Hadn’t he thought the same thing a few times when he had talked to her before? The boy shook his head. That wasn’t the point, it still felt a little wrong that he was having that sort of thoughts of a girl who was younger than him.

“Alright, if you’re having a moral crisis...we can wait until next year, but honestly Moony; age isn’t a big deal..”

Lupin rolled his eyes and sank into the bed. Perhaps age wasn’t a problem, but there were other things that surely were an issue. However, Tonks had that uncanny ability to make him feel that maybe that little issue wasn’t as bad as he wanted to think, but nevertheless, he couldn’t help but fear the possibility of rejection. 

The following days were uneventful, except for the news that Boreas and two other Slytherins including Yaxley and Burges had been sent to the hospital wing after a very unfortunate  _ accident  _  with acid spitting caterpillars.

“Wotcher everyone!” Tonks said slipping into the bench next to Snape “what are we laughing about?”

“Ah...a well done prank…” SIrius grinned “Our little acid caterpillar project was a success…”

“Oh...I heard a rumor about Boreas, Yaxley and Burges staying over the infirmary.” Tonks said tilting her head and looking at Snape “You really helped them deliver it?”

Snape only shrugged.

“I just left in the common room with a label saying “Do not touch”. If they were idiot enough to ignore the warning, it’s not my fault…”

“...A box telling you not to touch. You know that’s an open invitation. You might as well have written “ _ Open me!” “ _ Lupin chuckled.

“And that’s why it wa brilliant. Clever, Snivellus....clever.”

“Wait...but how did you explain the fact that there was a box filled with caterpillars there? Acid burns are nasty, someone is bound to ask questions and it’d eventually lead to you lot…” Tonks frowned.

“They won’t…” Snape said casually “They’ll just figure it was a very  _ unfortunate _ accident.”

“How so?”

“That was exactly what he was about to tell us when you arrived” Peter said “So tell us…”

“Acid caterpillar happen to be a very valuable and...hard to get potion ingredient. I already told Slughorn I was planning to give them to him, but happen to forget it in the common room. Since it was labeled I didn’t think anyone would be stupid enough to open it…”

“And of course he’d buy that. You’re his little potion protégé after all…” Sirius smirked “Brilliant…”

“Didn’t know you had decided to join these goofy bunch of pranksters, Severus”

“It is a temporary collaboration, believe me…” Snape replied “I shall take my leave now.  _ Nymphadora,  _ professor Slughorn has requested our assistance for a material gathering later today. He’ll see us in the east grounds at 3 pm. Don’t be late.”

“It’s Tonks, Severus...Tooooonks.” she said annoyed “is it really that hard for you to use my last name?”

Snape pushed himself up from the bench and closed his book with a loud thud.

“Yes…” 

Tonks glared at the boy walking away and shook her head.

“Seriously...I’d love if he started using my last name like normal 

people do, then again...Severus is hardly normal…” Tonks said opening her own book.

“I’m still a little envious that he gets to use your name.” Lupin said resting his chin on his palm.

“Don’t be. It’s not like he’s using it with my permission…” Tonks replied shaking her head “I better start with this if I want to make it on time to Slughorn.”

“And what is that?” James asked looking at what the girl was writing.

“Ohhh… a lovely essay about medieval persecution of witches…” Tonks sighed rolling her eyes.

“Hah...Binns, I reckon…” James chuckles “Mine sucked so badly. I don’t know how I got a  CBM in that one…”

“CBM?”

“Could have been better, moron…” James smirked.

“And well deserved…” Lupin said shaking his head “If only he had bothered to write it properly.”

“It was a masterpiece, Moony.”

“I quote… _ ”muggles are really foolish; like they think we would so stupid to go around showing everyone who we are. They should have known who they got were just unlucky muggles…””  _ Lunpin recited with a smile.

“You know I was right.” James shrugged.

“Oh, well...at least now I know what not to do…” she laughed “I think I can do decent thing. It’s just that it isn’t inspiring at all…”

“Yeah, it wasn’t my favorite assignment either…” Lupin nodded “Everything in the witch hunting wave was a little...unlikeable.”

“Moony totally aced it though, why don’t you ask him to lend you a hand with inspiration?” Sirius suggested with a smirk and Lupin gave him a slight glare.

“Oh, I wouldn’t want to bother him…”Tonks smiled faintly “It’s a silly essay for a subject that I don’t really need…”

“Oh, you’ll be surprised of how useful can history be…” Lupin chuckled “and I’ll be more than delighted to help you with that…”

“Really?”

“ Oh, he will loved to…” Sirius said “so how about you two go at it and we go for a snack and then we can check on Slughorn to see if he wants some extra hands today…”

“Sirius…” Lupin muttered with a raised eyebrow.

“Have fun…!”

Before Tonks could even utter a word, Sirius had dragged James and Peter away from the table leaving the girl slightly confused.

“Okay, so what bug bit him?” Tonks chuckled.

“It’s just him….being him, I guess…” Lupin replied shaking his head “come on...I know couple books that will help you with that essay. How about we go fetch them?”

“Sounds good. You lead and I follow!”

Studying with Tonks was an entertaining thing. Of course, Lupin had already noticed that pretty much any activity with her was really pleasant to him and it had nothing to do with him fancying the younger girl. It was about energy. Tonks was full of energy and life, and her cheerfulness was easily contagious and Lupin had to admit that he liked her way of thinking.

“I just don’t get it…” Tonks growled indignant “Isn’t the church supposed to promulge good acts, tolerance and understanding? Why would they do such a  cruel thing like Witch Hunting? Considering that 90% of the cases were innocent muggles…”

“I supposed they were afraid…” Lupin shrugged.

“An eradication is the solution…” Tonks sighed “Honestly, well...I guess I shouldn’t criticize. Aren’t we going through our own Witch Hunt these days?”

Lupin stared at her with a confused frown and the girl shrugged.

“Giants...werewolves...half-bloods...mudbloods…” she said “aren’t they pretty much the Witches from Middle Ages?”

Lupin hadn’t thought of it like that, but now that Tonks mentioned it,he realized she was right. It wasn’t the same thing, methodically speaking. Wizards weren’t burning werewolves and mudbloods, but the idea was pretty much the same. The boy watched  the girl scribble furiously in her parchment and wondered what she was writing.

“Fear and hate make people do stupid things…” Lupin muttered sadly.

“Now...that’s stupid…” Tonks pouted.

“If only everyone in this world were like you…” Lupin smiled at her sympathetically. 

“The world would be a better place, but everyone would get hurt since there wouldn’t be enough Remuses to stop them from falling flat on their faces.”  she replied trying to ease the sudden tension and Lupin chuckled.

“And that would be tragic….?”

“Of course it would be.” she smiled.

Tonks finished writing the last line of her essay and stretched her arms. She glanced at the magic clock that floated on the farthest wall of the library.

“Well, just in time. I have to go meet Slughorn and Severus for another adventure.”

“Well, let me escort you.”

“Oh, you just want to make sure I won’t break myself on the way, don’t you?” she laughed.

“Guilty…”

Slughorn wasn’t a man to reject willing offers of help when it came to gathering his precious potion ingredients, so needless to say, the man was thrilled by Sirius and company’s wish to help. 

“Alright, alright children…” Slughorn said clapping his hand to catch their attention “Before we head down. Well be heading to into the Forbidden Forest today. Needless to say, I want everyone to be attentive and stay together, understood? The forest isn’t place for children, and Merlin knows what Pomona and Minerva were to do to me if something happened.”

“Try to stay on your feet,  _ Nymphadora.”  _ Snape mumbled next to her.

“Cute, Severus. Very cute…”

“So...let’s make this a productive excursion. Do you have any idea of what are collecting today?”

The Gryffindors exchanged looks dumbfounded. It was obvious that they hadn’t expected the question. How were they supposed to know?

“Do you know?” Tonks whispered to Snape.

“Yes, and you should know too.”

“Should I?”

“Use that thick hooded brain of yours and think…” Snape said with a frown “look at the date, the hour and the area…”

Tonks reflected on Snape’s words trying to see if anything in the book he’d given her matched today’s gathering conditions.

“Purplap Fennel!” she said out loud in surprise and covered her mouth. She hadn’t intended to let everyone hear her, but in her excitement she had forgotten to lower her voice.

“Ahhhh, very good Ms. Tonks, very very good!That deserves 10 points for Hufflepuff” Slughorn said cheerfully “I see Severus has been helping you with your potions, hasn’t he? Yes, yes...we are harvesting Purplap fennel today. Judging by your faces, I assume you haven’t seen it in Herbology yet.”

“No, sir. We have barely covered common fennel…” Lupin replied.

“Understandable Mr. Lupin. Purplap Fennel is very rare variation of common fennel. Very scarce and difficult to find. Unlike the common fennel, their flowers are a soft shade of white and the petals are much longer so at  first sight you wouldn’t associate it to a fennel. There are several uses for Purplap fennel. It is a extremely good to treat cursed injuries...now who can tell me what’s the deal with cursed injuries?”

Sirius, James and Peter looked at Lupin surreptitiously. The bay had paled a little, but under the shade of the trees it was barely noticeable.  

“Cursed injuries can’t be healed completely. Ever…” Lupin answered.

“Very good, Mr. Lupin. Yes, most cursed injuries are very difficult to treat, but depending of the curse they are more or less fixable. I have a good friend, and old pupil...one of the brightest I’ve ever taught who’s been working in this subject, focusing primarily in development of possible treatments to those afflicted by lycanthropy. One of his current developments is a potion aimed to the treatment and healing of werewolf inflicted injuries and Purplap Fennel is one of the main ingredients.”

Lupin was visibly shocked at the news and it took and elbow from James hittng his left ribs to make him come back to his senses.

“Has it work, professor?” James asked.

“Oh, yes. So far the results have been quite positive. Now, today’s gathering will be a little different. I’ve spoken to dear Pomona, and she has agreed to give us a little space in one of her greenhouses so that we can plant a small patch of Purplap Fennel. Our objective today is to hunt downs as many bulbs as we can. So listen carefully…”

Slughorn went off explaining about the proper way to to identify Purplap Fennel and how to dig the bulbs out without damaging the tissue. Tonks -as noted by Snape - was uncharacteristically focused. At the remark, Tonks had snorted and replied saying that something as amazing as plant that could cure cursed injuries deserved her full attention but that he didn’t need to worry, since she would be back into pestering as soon as they began working. 

The truth was, Tonks was feeling the urge to know more about the plant and the so called potions. She didn’t know anyone afflicted by cursed injuries, but a voice in her head kept telling her it was important and that she  _ had _ to make sure she learned more of it, so she made a mental note to ask SLughorn and Sprout for some extra lessons. 

“You seem...particularly attracted to werewolf related topics..” Snape whispered at her. 

Since Snape and her were the more “experienced” members of the Gathering party, Slughorn trusted them to be able of work on their one, by the other hand, the other four Gryffindors were receiving and intensive private tutoring. With the four boys busy with Slughorn’s instructions ,Tonks and Snape were left with no other chatting companion but themselves.

“Why do you said that?”

“Aconite last year? Don’t think I haven’t seen you sneaking it whenever we stumbled with some and I know you haven’t been giving it to Slughorn.”

“Maybe I just think the flowers are pretty…”

“Considering the poison and your uncanny ability to get hurt, I doubt you would touch a highly poisonous plant for its aesthetics…”

“Ok, fine. I might be keeping a small devious stock of aconite.”

“Why for? Warding away unwanted wolves?”

“Not like I know many, Severus and what’s so bad about werewolves?”

“Nothing I supposed. Either way...why are you keeping a stock of aconite?”

“You will think I’m crazy if I tell you…”

“I think you are crazy...and you don’t have to tell me anything for me have that opinion.”

“Okay...fine. I just have...this strange feeling that I should have an emergency stock of it.”

“Why?”

“That’s the deal. I  _ don’t  _  know why. I just feel...I need to. It’s like a gut feeling…”

“That’s stupid…”

“I know it sounds stupid, to you…” Tonks said rolling her eyes “but...it isn’t for me. Have you ever had an unexplainable wish...no, not wish,  _ need _ to do something and you feel that if you don’t you’ll regret it awfully someday?”

“No…”

Tonks rolled her eyes. She knew he had to be lying, but Snape wouldn’t admit it. 

“Just let it slip, would you? It’s something I feel I’ve got to do…”

“...It’s not my problem what you do. Just be careful with those. If you’re planning to use them in..anyway, tell me first. Your poor potion brewing skills would condemn the whole school...” 

Snape turned away to put another purplap fennel bulb into their basket and Tonks chuckled. He’d been worried she would poison herself apparently, it was a cute gesture so she decided to neglect the part in which he had sort of insulted her potion making skills.

“Are you offering to tutor me on potions?”

“I never said that….”

“You said I had poor skills…”

“So…”

“That’s an invitation to tutor me…”

“No, it is not.”

“You’re a sweetheart, Severus. I promised I’ll come running to you when I need help in potions…”

“I did not…”

Tonks laughed as Snape scowled. The girl concluded that there weren’t anymore bulbs in her space and decided to move to the next one. 

“Wotcher!” she said squeezing next to the patch next to Lupin and added with a pompous voice that sounded way too much like Slughorn “oh, very good Mr. Lupin you seem to be exceeding on bulb digging.”

Lupin turned to her with a smile as he dropped a bulb into his own basket. 

“I’m not that great at digging, but it seems Sirius found his passion for it.”

Tonks turned to Sirius and James who were working a few patches away from them. Her cousin was  cheerfully digging and throwing soil all over James and Peter who were trying to pull out the bulbs behind him. 

“He sort of reminds me of my grandmother’s dog...he loved digging holes around her yard.”

“Funny that you are comparing him to a dog…” Lupin laughed.

“Well, between you and me? The dog was cuter…” she added winking at him.

Lupin laughed. He watched how Tonks had skillfully pulled a couple bulbs from the ground with practiced ease.

“You’ve become good at this…” he observed.

“At pulling bulbs?” she smirked.

“At that, too, but I was talking about potions…” he smiled at her.

“Oh. Well, I’ve learned a lot in this extracurricular activities and... there’s only a little you can take of Severus continuous remarks without having them stick; believe me, I think he probably has some sort of...how does muggles call it? Obsessive-compulsive tendencies when it comes to potion brewing.”

“So he...he’s giving you potions tutoring?”

“Ah...no, at least not willingly haha…” she chuckled “he just loves to correct me or make some remark of my ...poor performance, and then he has to correct me. I can see him as the future Potions Teacher if you know what I mean.”

“I think I do…” Lupin replied imagining an older Snape walking around the desks filled with terrified students with an annoyed look “He’d be a scary teacher, won’t he?”

“Yeah, he would…” she agreed “but not all teachers could ever be as lovable as you…” 

Lupin was frozen in place. He looked at the girl with confusion clearly in his eye.

“I don’t think I…”

“You basically gave me history class today and made it ...interesting. You know I’m feeling greatly tempted to ask you to tutor me at some point. I do well enough in charms and transfigurations, but Merlin...I’m so much struggling with Defense against the dark arts….”

“You know I wouldn’t mind…” he smiled “and I am actually pretty good in DADA…”

“Yeah, so I’ve heard…” she smiled “I’d offer you something in exchange, but I’m more than convinced that you already exceed me in every subject already…”

“I’m not that good in potions, though.” Lupin chuckled “Maybe you can give some of the tips that Snape has been passing you.”

“I could do that...just don’t tell him I am.” she said winking at him. “We are keeping a lot of secret for each other haha…”

“It seems like that…” he smiled at her.

Tonks gave him one of her loveliest smiles and Lupin felt his heart beating a little faster. He could almost hear Sirius, James and Peter wooing him in his mind and his face grew warm with the flush. Luckily, Tonks was too busy counting her bulbs to notice it, by the time she had looked back up, he had managed to push his the blush away, but his heart was still beating madly against his chest.


	14. Through cold and dark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Holidays to all. I worked hard to have these few chappies up since they are close to Christmas!

"In the middle of the journey of our life I found myself within a dark woods where the straight way was lost." 

—  [ **Dante Alighieri** ](https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/5031312.Dante_Alighieri)

 

If her first year had passed fast, Tonk’s second year was running in a blink of an eye between classes, school work and her extracurricular classes, the young metamorphmagus was more than enough to keep herself busy. 

Her metamorphosis lessons with McGonagall were going great and she was now able to maintain her transformation for more than 4h and her hair color wasn’t changing color from with her emotions anymore, at least not unless the feeling was very intense. She had asked Sprout and Slughorn to allow her learn more about the purplap  fennel, as a result she visited the 10th Greenhouse almost daily. Perhaps she was taking over too many activities for a second year student, but she’d managed to show her teachers that she was a very capable girl for her age and with her friends going to Hogsmeade every weekend, she had more than enough free time on weekends to do some extra work.

 

On Saturday morning, Tonks was in the 10th Greenhouse helping Prof. Sprout transplant the the Purplap Fennels.  The Hufflepuff house was very happy to see that the plants had adapted well and were growing strong.

“This is good news…” she had said cheerfully “If they continue like this, we might be able to propagate them.”

“Professor Slughorn mentioned that there was someone using them to create a potion that cured cursed injuries…” Tonks asked casually.

“Ah, yes. That would be Damocles Belby. A very clever student. Reminds me a little of you. He was a Hufflepuff, too. A good boy.” sprout said cheerfully “He was always a supporter of werewolves’ rights. His little sister was accidently bitten when they were young and his family sent her away…”

“If his sister was bitten, wouldn’t he have hated werewolves?” Tonks asked curiously.

“Oh, he did. For while...but his baby sister was one, now, and as much as he wanted he couldn’t hate her because…”

“Because werewolf or not, she was still the same sister  he loved…”

“That’s right. Unfortunately his sister didn’t make it. She was killed by ministry wolf-hunters during a raid. He was devastated. After he graduated Hogwarts he devoted himself into research for things that could help the werewolves…”

“And honorable thing. I’d love to meet him someday…” 

“Oh, I’m sure that if you talk to Prof. Slughorn he would be delighted to put you in contact with him.”

The Hufflepuff Head put down her shovel to open another bag of magical fertilizer and began to mix it with the fresh soil.

“May I ask why do you have so much sympathy with werewolves?”

“I….” Tonks began. To tell the truth she wasn’t sure. She just did.

According to her dad, she had always seen werewolves humanly. Something that made him very proud.

“I really don’t know, professor. Maybe it is because I can sort of ...relate with them. Being an metamorphmagus and well, the daughter of a blood traitor and all. It’s made me seen things a little different, I suppose. People seem to forget that werewolves are people, too.”

“Ah, dear. People tend to forget a lot of things these days. I won’t lie to you. Werewolves are dangerous creatures; their animal instinct makes them like that; but I’ve met some of them and you’re right, they’re still people.” the professor said planting the bulbs in a straight line “I’m sure Damocles would love to meet you. Not only you’re a fellow Hufflepuff, but you think in a way that is just like him…”   
“It seems we Hufflepuffs  have a way to do things others wouldn’t, don’t we?”

“Oh, yes. Regardless of what the other houses insist. We Hufflepuffs see things beyond what is in front of us.”

Tonks loved to spend time with professor Sprout. She was probably the only Hufflepuff she had a close relation with. The teacher had asked her once why she didn’t hung out with the girls from her year and she hadn’t judged her when the girl had answered that she just didn’t seem to click with her. 

_ “Well, it is ,perhaps, because you’re a little more mature than most of them.  I’ve seen you with Black, Potter, Pettigrew and Lupin, though, and from what I heard from professor Slughorn, Snape is your friend as well. Quite surprising. The boy isn’t quite sociable.” Sprout had said at the time. _

 

Snape wasn’t the image of friendliness and it’d be years before he won a prize for best friend of the year; but since their first catastrophic meeting in her first year until now, Snape had proved himself as good friend in his own distorted way, of course. 

“We are done here. You did an excellent job, here, Tonks.” Sprout smiled proudly.

“Thank you, professor. Anything else you need me to do?”

“Oh, no dear. It’s Saturday. Go and have fun. Take the rest of the day for yourself. “

 

After thanking the kind teacher for her time, Tonks left the 10th Greenhouse and was met with a chilling gust of autumn wind. It was a huge contrast against the nice and warm ambience inside the greenhouse. Tonks pulled up her coat and headed to the forest limits. She didn’t feel like going into the castle, and the view of reddening leaves and the fresh air seemed -by far- like something better than sitting indoors.

“Well, well...look at that; but if it isn’t the Half-blood Scum…”

Tonks stopped in her tracks and rolled her eyes before turning around to face Boreas and his nasty entourage of unpleasant Slytherins.

“Well, I was wondering how I hadn’t seen you in the whole week, Boreas,” Tonks said crossing her arms over her chest “I was hoping you had finally found something better to do than following me around…”

“Heh…” Boreas smirked “Acting all tough, aren’t you? Quite stupid considering that your little bunch of bodyguards aren’t around to defend you?”

“I don’t need anyone to defend me…” Tonks said firmly “ I’m perfectly capable myself, Boreas. Last time I checked...I broke your nose, didn’t I?”

Tonks was pretty pleased to see that the Slytherin boy hadn’t forgotten that small incident.That punch had made her proud, but to the boy, it was a low hit to his dignity.

“Shut up,  Half-blood scum… at that time I was caught by surprise, otherwise you wouldn’t have touched me…”

“Of course you were…” Tonks said rolling her eyes “Look, I’ve got better things to do than this. I’ll just walk away and act like nothing happened…”

Tonks turned around and tried to walk away, but she found her way blocked by Yaxley and Burges. Yaxley pushed her back making her fall on her butt on the gravel. The push hadn’t been strong enough to harm her, but it was enough to hurt. She heard something switch behind her and somehow, she knew that Boreas had raised his wand ready to attack. With a quick flip, Tonks was back on her feet with her wand raised in defensive mode.

“ _ Rictusempra!” _

Boreas hadn’t hesitated when he said the spell and Tonks barely evaded the hit of the spell by throwing herself to the ground. 

“Not so brave now, are you?” Boreas smirked “guess your coward mudblood side is stronger…”

Tonks pushed herself back up with annoyance and was debating whether to send a jinx at the trio when another wave of spells came at her. She managed to block one and evaded the second one, but the third one hit her right on her chest and sent her flying a few meters closer to the edge of the forest.

The wave of spells continued and Tonks found herself between blocking, reflecting and being hit by random spells multiple times. Three against one wasn’t fair, especially when the other three were advanced students with more spell knowledge than her. Then again, Boreas was a nasty boy and he couldn’t care less about fairness. 

Tonkshad managed to see through their plan, however. They were pushing her into the forbidden forest. They were probably trying to scare her off knowing about the bad reputation of the place, by the time Tonks was able to catch a breath. She was already pretty deep into the woods.

“Scared now, half-blood?” Boreas shouted with a smirk “If you beg we might consider helping you out…”

“Buggers...I’m not begging you, Boreas, and why would I be scared? I’ve been here more times that you could count!” she groaned rubbing her chest. One of the hit had managed to knock the air out from her and  someone had casted a jelly-leg jinx on her since her legs couldn’t stand her weight. 

“You should be scare. There are monsters in there, half-blood.” this time it was Yaxley.

“ I heard there’s one who likes mudblood blood, do you think he’d like a halfblood the same?” Burges snorted.

“That’s a brilliant idea” Boreas smirked “ It’d be a nice reminder of your crimes. Do you reckon your father would be heartbroken if he hears a monster ate his little mutt?”

“Oh shut up, Boreas!”Tonks screeched sending a stunning spell at the three Slytherins. However her spell missed its target by a few inches. 

“Heh. now it wouldn’t be fun if you can defend yourself, would it?  _ Petrificus totalus!” _

The binding spell hit her before she could raise her wand to block it. A horrifying sensation filled her when her arms and legs were frozen.“Have fun with your forest friends, half-blood. We’ll see you around...itf you survive.”

Tonks tried to break the spell, but it didn’t matter how much she tried, the spell had her body paralyzed as a living statue. The trio of Slytherins laughed at her once more and walked away. She watched them disappear between the bushes feeling miserable. 

Some hours passed, or maybe they’d only been minutes, but the silence in the dark forest was starting to make her anxious. The wind was blowing colder and she was sure that if not for the paralyzing spell, she’d have been trembling like one of those mexican dogs that her grandmother used to think were cute. 

She heard a broken branch somewhere behind her and her heart hastened. She couldn’t see, but she had that uncomfortable sensation that something was staring at her with interest. For minute she’d hoped it was Mr. Wolfie, but as the minutes passed and he didn’t seem to come close she guessed it was something else, and that’s when her fear began to grow.

***

Lupin and his friends came back from Hogsmeade with their cheeks red because of the wind and the cold. The weekends in Hogsmeade were fun and entertaining, but he missed Tonks company and he knew that his friends thought the same. Lupin was sure that if there was a way for them to sneak the girl out with them, they would totally go for it.

“Hey, Evans!” Lupin greeted Lily when they reached the Great Hall. The girl was just coming out from it and her face seemed a little worried.

“You okay, Evans? You look...eh...flushed?” James asked.

“What? Oh...I am okay. Have you seen Tonks?”

“No, we just came back to the castle…” Sirius replied “Why?”

Lily bit her lower lip in contemplation before speaking again.

“Did something happen?” Lupin asked. 

“No, I don’t...well, I don’t know. I might be wrong…”

“About what? For Merlin’s sake,just say it….” Sirius said impatiently.

“Severus overheard Boreas, Yaxley and Burges talking about teaching a lesson to somebody. I don’t know who, but I just wanted to make sure it wasn’t Tonks.” Lily said quickly “but she’s nowhere. I already asked the Hufflepuff and nobody has seen her since the morning!”

“Did you try the Greenhouses? She’s working with sprout on Saturday mornings.” Lupin said. He had become anxious the minute Lily had said that Tonks was missing.

“Severus did.” Lily replied “but professor Sprout said she had left a while ago…”

“How about the library? She and Moony are always lurking there…” Sirius asked ignoring Lupin’s elbow.

“Already did. She’s not there…”

“Have you looked outside? Maybe she went for a walk?” Peter suggested-

“Hopefully...that’s the case…” Lily sighed “I go ask professor McGonagall. Would you keep an eye for Tonks?”

“Sure. We’ll go check outside. SHe can’t be far, I mean there aren’t many places she could go in school , right?” James nodded “Leave that to us, Evans.”

“Yes, I guess you’re right. I’ll see you later then.”

With that said Lily rushed away with the clear intention of finding professor McGonagall, while the four remaining Gryffindors began their search on the school grounds. Three hours passed and none had found any clues of Tonks’s whereabouts and her friends were starting to grow concerned. 

Lily seemed tense. THe girl had turned Tonks into the younger sister she didn’t have and needless to say, she was very fond of her. The idea that the girl was missing was starting to make her panic.

“Severus is trying to find out if Boreas had something to do with it.” Lily said restlessly “Professor McGonagall said they can’t raise an alarm until she’s missing for more than 7 hours…”

“You have to be bloody kidding me”Sirius snapped “7 hours? Where is that arse...I’ll punch some answers from his disgusting Slytherin face if I have to…”

“Calm down, Sirius. Making a fuss is not going to help us find Tonks…” Lupin said grabbing his friend’s shoulder. He was trying to keep himself cool, but the truth was that he, too, wanted to punch Boreas for answers. 

The first time they had tried something against Tonks, the girl had ended up injured and abandoned in a place that, if not for Snape and Lily, nobody would have found her. What if she was in a similar spot now? His heart skipped a beat thinking of Tonks being injured and unable to ask for help.

“Remus is right, Sirius…” James said with a frown “We’ll keep looking outside. You see if the ghosts or anyone has seen her…”

Lily nodded and ran off once more.

“We already looked  _ everywhere _ .” Peter said “She wasn’t outside.”

“There has to be somewhere we missed…” James replied shaking his head “she wouldn’t have gone to Hogsmeade, would she?”

“There’s no way she could pass the main gate…” Sirius said “but it is worth a try.”

“Then, let’s do this…” Lupin said “James, you and Peter go back to Hogsmeade and see if anyone has seen her around. Sirius and I will keep searching the grounds…”

They nodded and ran off as well. Sirius and Lupin decided to search separately and cover more ground. Peter wasn’t wrong, they had already searched all possible place in the school grounds, the only alternative was that Tonks wasn’t anywhere inside the school grounds. A chill ran down the back Lupin’s back and he couldn’t help but wonder if the girl had remembered to wear her cloak.It was getting colder and colder as the night was approaching.

Lupin came to a stop when he reached the usual spot where Tonks would wait for him during full moons, and for the first time in his life he wished that it was closer to full moon. With his over sensible senses, he would have been able to track down Tonks by her scent. He stood there a few minutes and then it dawned to him. The Forest! None of them had considered that possibility.

_ Because she wouldn’t wander into the forest …unless she was forced too. _

But if she was somewhere in the forest, that would make it even harder to track her.The forest was big, with so many places to hide and trip; it was, possibly,the worst place for the little and clumsy Nymphadora Tonks to hang out and without thinking it twice, Lupin walked into the forest.

 

A few minutes passed since Lupin started his search. His excursions into the forest as a wolf had given him a nice advantage over the terrain. He was pretty familiar with it  and somehow he knew how to move through the thick vegetation. The smell of soil and plants was familiar to him, he recognized them as the smells that accompanied him each full moon: soil, moss, humidity, plants and...lilacs? It was Tonks perfume. He remembered that Sirius had commented about it, saying that the flower didn’t seemed to suit her and Tonks had glared at him saying she didn’t care. In Lupin’s opinion, lilacs were suited her well.

The boy had spent most of his short life dreading his animal side; trying to hide it and feeling both fear and embarrassment about the many “gifts” that being a werewolf gave to his human counterpart, but today he was actually grateful. His enhanced sense of smelt was what had allowed him to find her particular scent between the hurricane of smells that the forest exuded. The scent led him into a clearing and to his joyous relief, Tonks was there. She was sitting in and awkward position, with her knees bent on the ground and her right hand slightly raised with her wand. It took him several seconds to realized that the girl had been immobilized. 

“ _ Finite incatatem!”  _

Tonks body relaxed immediately and the girl stumbled directly into his arms with a relieved sigh.

“Merlin, I thought nobody would to find me!” she muttered with relief “You are a life savior, Remus.”

“What happened?”

“Boreas and his lackeys. Cornered me into the forest and immobilized me. I was starting to get nervous, because I could feel something watching me…”

Lupin lips tightened in anger. Maybe he should have let Sirius punch and hex Boreas, after all. Tonks was cold; the girl was wearing a light cloak, but with the dampness of the forest and the chilly wind, he saw the girl trembling a little.

“Are you hurt?” he said taking off his own cloak and putting it over her shoulders. The girl had looked at him gratefully.

“No...I don’t think I am. Just a little numb…and cold, but seems like you already fixed that...” she replied “How did you find me?”

“It was luck.” he quickly replied trying not to smile at her comment. He wasn’t going to say he’d followed her scent to her after all “You are freezing. Come on, let’s get back to the castle. 

Tonks got up with Lupin’s help. Her legs were a little wobbly after the jinx and the hours sitting in the same position, but with the boys help she managed to walk into the castle. They hadn’t even made it to the vestibule when they were tackled by a group of people.

“Tonks! Thanks heaven!” Lily cried out running to hug her. Snape stood behind her and though he didn’t say anything, Tonks noticed the relief in his eyes “We were about to go and…”

Once Lily had let go, she was immediately trapped into a bone crushing hug courtesy of Sirius. 

“Ugh...I can’t...breath…”

Sirius released her and turned to Lupin punched his arm. 

“You found her mate. For a minute there we thought you had gone missing as well…” 

“Mr. Lupin…”

Both Tonks and Lupin had just noticed the presence of Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout; both teachers seemed to be relieved as well.

“I do believe you are aware that the forest is beyond student limits…” McGonagall said with frown.

Lupin did, but at the time, the idea of Tonks stumbling through the forest with the approaching night had weighted more than his good student logic.

“I...I am sorry, professor.” he said.

“Oh, don’t be mad at him!” Tonks said quickly “Honestly, if he hadn’t found me I’d probably still be there and the place was starting to get on my nerves and….wait. How did you know I was in the forest?”

“Boreas…” Lily explained “Severus managed to get the truth from him and we went for professor McGonagall and professor Sprout.”   
“Don’t worry, dear. They will be properly punished…” professor Sprout said grabbing the girl’s shoulder soothingly “Minerva, let’s not chastise the poor boy.  It’s obvious that his worry about his friend won against his good judgement and Tonks is right. Merlin knows how long it would have taken to find her…”

McGonagall let out a sigh and relaxed.

“I will let it slip this time since it was an act of goodwill, Lupin.”

“Eh...thank you, professor.”

“ Oh, dear...you’re freezing…” Professor Sprout said rubbing the girl’s back “I can’t believe a group a kids could do such a thing. Do you imagine if something else had found her before, Mr. Lupin did? Merlin knows what creatures live inside that forest…”

“Rest assure that Dumbledore will be informed about what happened, Pomona.” McGonagall said with a knowing nod “ Horace was pretty upset about the situation as well, so I trust that he’ll take the appropriate actions.”

“Hopefully he will….”Sprout said with a nod “Dear, maybe we should take you to the Hospital Wing…”

“Oh, no...I’m fine…”Tonks replied waving her hands “Really, I’m okay. Just a little cold and well...a little hungry, maybe? No need for another visit to Madam Pomfrey. I think she’s growing tired on my regular presence in the place…”

“Oh, nonsense...but are you sure?”

“Yes, professor Sprout. I think food and maybe chocolate will fix it…” she smiled brightly “and I think this blokes behind me are dying to force feed me all that chocolate they bought for me from Honeydukes, so...I’ll be alright.”

“Oh, well…” professor Sprout seemed to hesitate, but then smiled as she turned at Sirius and company “Then I’ll leave her on your care. I think Minerva and I will pay a visit to Horace.”

The group nodded and watched the two teachers walk away. Tonks let out a sigh and turned back to her friends. Sirius’s usual goofy face had been replaced by a concerned frown that was so unlike him, but ,for some reason, she found it strangely familiar and it  made her feel a pin of unexplainable sadness in her chest. 

“Why are you looking at me so gloomily?” she asked blinking.

“Well, what did you expect? You were gone for what….8 hours and nobody knew where and then I find out that a group bloody Slytherins….no offense, Snivellus….”

“None taken…”

“Used a spell to bind you and left you completely vulnerable in forest full of nasties. How am I supposed to feel?”

“Eh….sorry?”

“And why the bloody hell are you apologizing about? You’re the victim here?!”

“Ok,ok….Sirius, I think you need to chill…” James said patting his back “Tonksie is sound and safe, Remus, here saw through it and brought her back. So you can relax...no need to be so touchy.”

“Oh, I’m not going be relaxed until I break that bastard’s nose and stick that wand on his…”

“Sirius...language…” Lupin coughed.

“Sorry….I’m just furious.”

“That’s understandable. What they did wasn’t right.” Lily said soothingly grabbing Tonk’s shoulders “How about we get you something to eat?”

“That’s a brilliant idea…” Tonks nodded “And while we are at it...Severus can tell me how he persuaded Boreas to confess…”

“ I did not do anything illegal if that’s what you were hoping…”

“Ah...there I thought you’d give me an interesting story…”

“Illegal?” Lily asked with a frown.

“What _Nymphadora_ was implying was if I had used a true serum on him, which naturally, I did not.”

“Well, what did you do? That troll brain prat wouldn’t have said anything unless I had really died, of course.”

“Well...I did use some help….wand help, if you wanted to know…”

Tonks thought for a second and then snorted.

“You confunded him, didn’t you?”

Snape didn’t answer. He simply shrugged and the Hufflepuff girl laughed. 

“You sneaky niffler….” she giggled “I’ll have to watch my back in case you decided that I’m a nuisance one day…”

“Who said I don’t think you are nuisance already?”

“Well, I’m a nuisance that you like…” Tonks said winking at him.

“Tch...I am afraid your fears were all in vain, she’s just as annoying as she’s always been. No real damage done…”

“Glad  that she’s fine...now eat.” Sirius said pushing a plate at her.

“Eh...Sirius, I won’t eat all that….do you want me to get sick?”

“Someone is taking the big brother role a little too seriously…” Peter laughed. 

Tonks rolled her eyes and took a decent amount of food and began eating. She was starving and the food fell nicely into her empty stomach. She hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast, and even then she had only had a couple pieces of toast and eggs. 

“Are you feeling better?” Lupin asked her.

“Oh, yes. Much much better…” she nodded “Honestly...it is getting chilly out there and I had this eerie feeling that someone was watching me all the time. For a second there I was hoping it’d be Mr. Wolfie. It’s not like he could do much, but at least his company would have made me feel much better…”

Lupin choked with his drink and began coughing. James and Sirius exchanged knowing looks while Peter patted him on his back.

“Oh, dear. Are you okay, Remus?” Tonks asked.

And the boy waved his hand making her know he was fine.

“Who’s Mr. Wolfie?” Lily asked curiously.

“Oh, just a wolf I met in the school grounds…”

“Ah...wolf?”

“And you named him Mr. Wolfie?” Snape said quirking an eyebrow “oooh, very original…. _ Nymphadora _ ...very original…”

Tonks stuck out her tongue at Snape and popped another chip into her mouth.

“Either way. He’s my friend and he lives in the forest...I think, at least that’s where I’ve seen him. So kinda hoped he would have come to make me company. It’d been less….mmm...unsettling?”

“What Boreas did was wrong.” Lily said tilting her head “I mean...he could have killed you, you know? What if it hadn’t been Lupin who stumbled with you? If it had been someone or something else?” 

Lily shuddered at the thought.

“Nothing happened. I guess I have my luck to thank for that…”

“What did you do to make Boreas dislike you so much?” Peter asked with interest.

“Honestly...I think that exist…” she sighed “He’s probably one of the many “enemies” of my family. You know those crazy pureblood elitists that consider my mum as an abomination for throwing away her legacy to marry an impure man yadayada….”

“That might be. There are many in Slytherin that don’t like you because of Andromeda Black’s treason…” Snape explained “To them the blood legacy is important and for some one from such high family to...well… abandon them is like a capital sin.”

“It’s Andromeda Tonks by the way…” Tonks corrected “She no longer considers herself a Black after being kicked out from the family tree.”

“Bless her for that…” Sirius said raising his cup.

“Still, that’s not an excuse for him to bully you…”

“Yeah, I know. If I didn’t knew better, I’d have thought he fancied me in a really obscure way…”

“Tch...boys that fancy a girl won’t throw spells at them…” James said shaking his head.

“Nope...they lend them  _ their cloak _ when she’s cold….” Sirius added in a suggestive tone and Lupin kicked him under the table.

“Talking about cloaks…” she said turning to Lupin “I should give this back....”

“You can return it later. Yours still wet and I can see you trembling.” Lupin replied kicking Sirius again to make him stop grinning. 

“My knight in shining armor, isn’t he? I really owe you way too many favors, Remus…”she chuckled “ And apparently to Severus, too…”

“Saved it. The day I need a favor from you will be the death of me…” Snape groaned.

“Oh, well...then I’ll keep abusing of  _ your _ favors…”

“Which is a clear sign of how incompetent you are…”

“Oh, incompetent indeed. Hope you get used to sticky messes because I’m certainly going to make explode enough potions in the next years…”

“....”

“You two…”Lily laughed “I just can’t get enough of you two…”

“Severus is probably the only Slytherin besides my mum who actually stands me…” Tonks snorted “We are besties, aren’t we, Severus?”

“Don’t push it…”   
“Yup, that’s what my mum usually says, too.”

The group -except Snape- burst into laughs. Boreas could bully her as much as he wanted, as long as she had her friends, she wasn’t afraid.


	15. Sickness unknown

_ "Every atom of your flesh is as dear to me as my own: in pain and sickness it would still be dear."  _ _   
_ _ — Charlotte Brontë _

 

November’s full moon was difficult for both Lupin and Tonks. The first because his transformations tended to get pretty bad during the months of winter and the latter because once more she had fallen into her mysterious illness.

Tonks had kept it quiet and thanks to her -now more controlled- metamorph powers she was able to hide most of sick features. However her lack of energy and her obvious lack of appetite was easily noticed by a certain Gryffindor boy who had made a habit of keeping an eye on her. Lupin still remembered the last time she’d been sick. It’d been  around full moon as well. He wished he wasn’t feel as bad himself, but his concerns for Tonks current poor health was almost making him forget his own pain.

“Hey…” he said softly when he entered the Muggle Lit. section.

He had figured that when Tonks wanted to hide from the rest of the world, she’d most likely hide in there. The girl was curled in the seat with her cloak wrapped over herself as a blanket. Tonks raised her head a little and Lupin felt his heart break at the sight. She was so pale and weak.

“Oh, wotcher, Remus.” she said sitting up, but Lupin stopped her and pushed her back down gently.

“Why aren’t you in bed?” 

“Too noisy. Not good for my headache…”

“There’s the Hospital Wing…”

“I feel better here.”

“Tonks, lying in a armchair can’t be good for your posture…”

“It’s fine. I already took the potions that Madam Pomfrey gave me. They should kick in soon” she whispered “You don’t look good either…”

“It’s nothing. I’ll be better tomorrow...so don’t worry about it…” 

Lupin wanted to tell her that she should stay in bed tonight and skip her usual full moon stroll. The weather wasn’t going to help with her sickness; but he wasn’t supposed to know she did those little excursions with a werewolf that she believed to be a wolf. 

“It’s getting colder. Let me put a warming spell on your cloak…” Lupin pulled out his wand and whispered the spell over the girl’s black and yellow cloak. 

“Oh...it’s nice. My hero as always…”

“I can’t hardly be considered a hero.”he chuckled .

“You are...for me. That’s why I like you…”

Lupin could feel himself blushing; even if it wasn’t meant to be romantically, the words still made him shudder.

“Can you stay with me?”

Lupin would, if it had been any other day, but it was full moon and he was already running late. He should have been in the Shrieking Shack 20 minutes ago, but his worries for the young girl had made him stall. 

“I can’t…” he whispered “there’s...something….uhm...important I need to do. I’ve got to go back home.”

“Home? Now?”

“Yes, umm...I’m supposed to floo home in bit, I just wanted to check on you…”

“Oh…” she sighed “Tonight is full moon…”

“Uh...yes...it is…” he said hoping he didn’t sound too sadly.

Tonks didn’t say more and he wondered if she had fallen asleep already. The truth was, that Tonks was wide awake, but she was too lost in thought. She had noticed that Lupin tended to look ill and disappear during full moons; and there was also his imminent aversion to werewolves. After thinking about it for a while, the girl had come to two possible conclusions: the first one was that he was secretly a werewolf hunter who went on huntings during full moons; or second, he was a werewolf himself. The latter sounded most likely, considering how bad he looked before and after the full moon.

If Lupin was a werewolf, it was fine with her. She really didn’t care, but even if she was dying to tell him; she knew that if Lupin hadn’t told her it was because he didn’t want her to know, and so she’d respect that and let him tell her himself. In the meantime, she would play dumb and would use any possible chance to let him know her opinion about werewolves.

Lupin let out a sigh and pulled her improvised blanket over her shoulders.

“...Remus….?”

“Yes…”

“I’ll see you around….”

“Yes. Of course…”

Lupin left feeling crestfallen and his feeling seemed to make his transformation especially violent that night; but by the time the moon had rose to its apex, the wolf left the the old, abandoned shack and ran through the forest. He wasn’t hungry, but he was searching something; after a few minutes, he found the trail of lilac perfume lingering in the frosted air. His wolf mind was happy, but the bits of his human mind was worried. The weather was inclement, the cold was even making him chilly under the thick coat of fur. Tonks shouldn’t be wandering around in her condition.

His worry and the wolf wish to see her mixed up and ,soon, he’d reached the place were the girl used to wait for him. Just like that time some months ago, she was curled against the large rock with her eyes closed; and just like then, the wolf moved to her side and offered his warmth. Unlike other times, she wasn’t very talkative, but that was okay with him. Her company seemed to be enough for him, and when the girl had fallen asleep, he made sure to keep safe. 

 

The next morning Lupin woke up feeling much better than the day before. His muscles were stiff and hurting, but at least he could move freely and surprisingly, there were no new scars. The wolf had stayed up looking after Tonks and he’d been to busy with the task to hurt himself. 

He couldn’t remember what had happened to Tonks. Had he taken her back to Hogwarts? He was trying to remember as he finished dressing himself when a soft moan from the other room made him freeze. 

The wolf had taken Tonks along with him, to the Shrieking Shack. How was he going to explain his presence there? He thought in horror as he entered the next room; but he didn’t have to. Tonks fever had raised and the girl was currently in a delusional sleep. Lupin wasn’t a medic, but he knew that high fevers were a dangerous thing, so, ignoring his aching muscles, he picked up the girl and rushed back to Hogwarts. 

Madam Pomfrey hadn’t been too happy when she saw Tonks state. He had to invent a story about finding her passed out in the corridor on his way to the hospital wing since he couldn’t tell her that the girl had spent the night with a dangerous werewolf in some precarious house.  Luckily, Madam Pomfrey had bought the story believing that Tonks had probably fainted on her way to see her. 

“Is she going to be alright?”

“I will try to lower the fever, but like I told her the other day. I can’t seem to find anything wrong with her. She’s healthy, but at the same time she’s not. It is...peculiar…” 

Tonks was in a restless sleep for most of the day. Lupin had stayed on her side keeping a watchful eye in the same way the wolf had done the night before. His friends popped some time later, and they were all alarmed by the news that Tonks fever didn’t seem to be going down despite the efforts of the mediwitch; and when the fourth potion had no results, Madam Pomfrey had left in a rush to see Dumbledore. 

“I didn’t like that face…” Sirius said with concern. 

“The potions aren’t working…” Lupin replied “They worked the other time…”

“Potions only work if she is sick…” Snape said.

“Severus, she’s obviously sick…”Lily said shaking her head.

“Perhaps, but not...physically. At least that’s my guess…”

“What do you mean?” Lupin asked.

“I’ve read about it. They call them ghost diseases …” Snape explained “ the symptoms are real, but since there’s no disease, potions and healing spells just won’t work…”

“Why?” Lily asked.

“I don’t know…” Snape shrugged “but you can heal something that doesn’t exist, can you?”

“If it doesn’t exist, how do you explain that?” Sirius groaned while nudging his head at Tonks.

“Mr. Snape is actually quite right…” a kind voice interrupted “I’m happy to see you’ve been studying…”

Dumbledore was standing by the door wearing his usual dark purple robe and with his kind smile. Standing behind was Madam Pomfrey and McGonagall.

“Professor Dumbledore…” Lily said in surprised.

“I see you are all here because of Ms. Tonks. Poppy has told me the details and I am afraid that what Mr. Snape is suggesting might be the case. This is not a disease, properly speaking.”

Dumbledore walked to the bed and gently placed his hand over Tonks forehead. His hand lingered there for a while before he finally removed it.

“Can you help her, professor?”

“I’m afraid there’s little that can be done, but wait, Mr. Black.”Dumbledore sighed.

“But Albus, there should be something that can be done. Her fever is way too high…” Madam Pomfrey complained “You can’t expect me to sit down and do nothing when one of my patients is agonizing.”

“And I understand, Poppy, but no good will come from giving medicine to someone who does not need it.” Dumbledore said with a sad smile.

“The medicine worked the last time she was sick…” Lupin said “Why isn’t it working this time, professor?”

“And how are we sure that it was the medicine that worked and not something else, Mr. Lupin?” Dumbledore asked. He was staring at him with that mysterious look that always left him dumbfounded.

“Should we call her parents, Albus?” McGonagall asked.

“No, no need to worry them yet. I believe Ms. Tonks will be back on feet after a good night of sleep. I trust you are hoping to stay with her…” he added smiling at the group of students “Well, I assume Mr. Lupin is already bound to stay the night anyway, but I meant the rest of you…”

“We want to…” Sirius nodded.

“But Madam Pomfrey won’t let us…”James shrugged.

“She says we are a bunch of noisy kids interrupting her patients’ rest…”Peter finished.

“Which is silly considering there are not other patients, Remus and Tonksie...and none of them will mind our noise…” Sirius pouted.

Lily and Snape rolled their eyes.

“I see. Well, I am sure Poppy can make an exception today. I believe there’s enough space her for you to stay and I believe the company will do, Ms. Tonks good.”

Madam Pomfrey wasn’t convinced, but she wouldn’t question the headmaster’s word. Dumbledore looked at the students solemnly.

“I will come in the morning to see how is Ms. Tonks doing. I thrust you will look after her during the night…”

“We will…” Lily nodded “and if anything happens we will let you know.”

“Perfect. Now Poppy and Minerva I think we should have a word. If its okay if I abuse of your hospitality, my dear Poppy.”

“Of course, professor.”

The three teachers vanished into the nurses office and closed the door catching the attention of James, who elbowed Sirius and nudged his head in that direction.

“I wonder what are they going to talk about…” James said innocently.   
“Well...maybe we can…”

“Eavesdropping is rude…” Lily chastised them “If it was something that we should know they’d tell us.”

“No if they think we’re too young to understand, which I beg to differ…” Sirius groaned “Should we…?”

“You wouldn’t make it. I saw professor McGonagall linger at the door for a while. I am sure she was casting a silencing spell” Snape said shaking his head “You’ll just make a fool of yourself if you were to try…”

“You can do that?”

“Honestly, Potter….were you even paying attention at Charms last week?” Lily said rolling her eyes. She moved to Tonks bedside and was putting a cold towel on her forehead.

“Ehm...nope. I got distracted...with something else…”

Lupin coughed trying to hide a snort. James had spent half of the class mooning about Lily, so no, he hadn’t heard when Flitwick had explained about the  _ Muffliato  _  charm. However, Lupin had to agree with Sirius. What could be so secret that they couldn’t let them overhear?

“What are you reading, Snivellus?” Sirius said trying to distract himself from. The boy was now peeping over the Slytherin’s shoulder.

“Oh...that’s what you were talking about?” Sirius asked with interest “ _ Ghost diseases _ . How come you happened to be reading this book?”

“Light reading material…” Snape shrugged “It caught my attention a while ago when she got sick the first time around. She mentioned something about Madam Pomfrey assuring her that she wasn’t sick at all, but she  _ was  _ sick. I thought it was an interesting fenomena and decided to look into it. It’s not like I was concerned about her or anything….”

“Nobody said anything about that….” Sirius smirked.

“Does it says anything useful, Severus?” 

“Not really. There’s no much information since they’re rare cases of magical ailments. All that I found is pure hypothesis about it. “

“Ah...too bad. You know...she has pretty hair…” Lily said looking at the dark mousy brown mop of hair that was spread over the pillow “I don’t know why she insist on keeping it covered under the hood.

Lupin bit down his lips hoping that her hair wouldn’t suddenly change of color. He didn’t think Tonks wanted them to find out that way, but apparently, when she was weak and sick, her powers seemed to be nullified and he assumed that her current look was her base form.

“She has her reasons, I reckon…” Lupin shrugged “so I don’t think there happens to be a proposed treatment among those hypothesis, are there?”

“No, however, some of the researchers seem to believe that since the disease is not actually real, there shouldn’t be any real threat to the person’s life, but that doesn’t mean that the physical strain of the symptoms could have severe implications. Then again other people thinks the contrary, so in the end...they just know nothing.” Snape replied closing the book with a thud.

“I see. Could I borrow that book?” Lupin asked and Snape gave it to him.

“Enjoy it...it’s pretty much useless, to be honest.”

“Well let’s not beat our heads on it. We’re not even sure Tonksie’s gotten that so….” Sirius said shaking his head.

“Got...what?” a weak voice mumbled. It almost sounded as someone who had just been woken up.

“Oh, Tonks…” Lily said startled when the girl looked at her half asleep.

“Wotcher, Lily…” she said dreamily “Did anyone get the Hippogriff that kicked me?”

“Hmph...if only, cous. Nope, you’re sick and delusional…”

“I might be sick, but I’m not delusional…” she replied trying to push herself up, but Lily’s hand pushed her back down gently.

“Maybe it’d be better if you stay laid down…” she said softly “I don’t have to ask you how you feel, do I?”

“I’ve been better. I’m in the Hospital Wing...how did I get here?”

“I brought you here…” Lupin said “I...found you passed out  in the corridor this morning.”

“Saved once more by Remus. You have a gift to take care of me, I see…” Tonks said in a poor attempt of chuckle “I had a funny dream, you know?”

“You did?” Lily asked sweetly “Good or bad?”

“Not sure...I saw Sirius. He was...older and he talking to an hippogriff. He was in a very bad mood...”

“That has to be a nightmare…” James laughed “You don’t want to see him when he is in bad mood….believe me.”

“And why was I in bad mood, if you can tell?”

“Mmm...something about Dumbledore not letting you do anything...and Severus rubbing it in your face. You were so mad at Severus...”

“Aw….that wouldn’t put me in bad mood…” Sirius snorted “ Snivellus and I mates, aren’t we?”

“....in your dreams, Black…”

“Yes...it was just a dream…”her words trace off for a while.

Lupin watched her for a while. Maybe it was her lingering fever, but her expression looked older and tired. Her dream of Sirius and a hippogriff sounded like a random silly dream, but maybe it wasn’t that random. Could it have been one of those dreams that seemed to haunt her?

“So was older me, handsome?” Sirius wagging his eyebrows.

“Oh, it was a dream, not a glimpse of the future…” James laughed “why do you even care?”

“Hey, true or false, who cares. I want to know!”

Lupin shook his head at the silliness of his friends; Lily seemed to think the same, as she rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to Tonks. 

“Your fever seems a little better, but it is still a little too warm.”

“Ironically...I’m freezing….” 

“Well, it is a little chilly in here…” Lily admitted “And we don’t have fever. It must be rougher for you…”

“Want me to charm the sheets, too?” Lupin offered.

“Too?” Lily asked curiously.

“He charmed my cloak yesterday. To keep me warm…”

“A warming spell?” Lily asked him “That’s a really cute gesture…”

Lily lips curled in a knowing smile and Lupin felt like smacking his head against the wall. Was he so easy to read?

“Actually...I think I am feeling much better.” Tonks replied pushing herself up. Lily arranged the pillows behind her so that the younger girl was in a more comfortable position “My head doesn’t feel like exploding anymore…”

“That is good.Professor Dumbledore was in here a while ago. He said he’d come to visit tomorrow morning.”

“Oh, nifflers.” Tonks sighed “Even the headmaster? Now I feel important….”

“Yeah, and to make you feel even better; we got permission to stay over tonight” Sirius said cheerfully. 

“Oh well, that’s great…” Tonks smiled “The more the merrier, right?”

Lupin watched her for a while. It was relieving to see her a little more like herself even if she was still a little too pale and too weak. Before even realizing it, he found himself sitting by her side, right across Lily who smiled at him. He would deal with Lily Evans later, for now, he’d just watch over Tonks.

 

***

As promised by Dumbledore, the headmaster visited her the very next day. By then, Tonks was pretty much recovered; it was a miraculous recovery, as Sirius had said.  There was no explanation on how Tonks could be awfully sick one day, just to be well the next, but Dumbledore had not said anything out of the ordinary. He’d just smiled and told her that he was glad she was feeling better.

Just like the first time, Tonks was released two days later and things went back to usual and with December around the corner, the cold and christmas mood was heavy in the air. 

“Hey, Lupin.” Lily greeted him as she sat down in front of him in the study hall.

“Oh, hello, Evans.” he replied politely. He’d been avoiding her for a while, but it seemed that he’d been cornered this time.

Lily was looking at him with her bright emerald eyes and a smile on her lips. 

“How are you? I am surprised you’re not with Tonks.” she said casually.

“She had lessons with McGonagall.”

“Oh, she must be great in Transfigurations to receive private lessons. I mean, you’re pretty much the first in our class and I never heard of you receiving special lessons…”

Lupin quill stopped half through the word he’d been intending to write and coughed. He couldn’t tell her that Tonks was receiving extra lessons because she was a metamorphmagus.Especially since he wasn’t supposed to know.

“She’s probably way better than me…” he shrugged.

“You think? I mean...she’s a little...ehm...clumsy and all. Well she’s smart, I have no doubts...OH. That must be it…”

Lupin looked at her puzzled.

“I suppose she’s receiving extra lessons to improve her clumsiness…”

Lupin’s eyes widened. From all the people to look down of Tonks’s clumsiness, Lily Evans was the last person he’d have ever imagined.

“Tonks does perfectly fine with magic. She might be a little clumsy on her feet, but I think that makes her quite adorable. Besides, she’s hard worker; even if her clumsiness got in the way, she’d figure a way to overcome it and she’s so sincere and understanding...that’s I like about her and...”

Lupin suddenly realized what he’d just blurted out and his look fell on his parchment. He was sure he was probably redder than the  Gryffindor flag.

“Oooh, I knew it!” Lily giggled.

“That was…a dirty trick, Evans…”

“I’m sorry, Lupin; but it was the only way I could have made you open up with me…” she smiled apologetically “Don’t be mad, please…”

Lupin sighed. 

“But...it’s not a bad thing. I mean she’s a good girl, just like you said, and she fancies you, too…”

“What?”

“Well, she hasn’t said it right away, but it is easy to see…” Lily replied “Trust me, I’m a girl...we understand each other. Whenever we are together she has to mention you at least once…”

“... She wouldn’t…”

“Why not? Honestly, Lupin...among the four birdbrains, you’re the most decent boy. Why wouldn’t she? She was fond of you since day one. She was mooning over that kind boy that  helped her up in the train …” Lily said winking at him. 

“She did? I mean…”

“I just don’t understand how’s that you’re friends with Black and Potter. You’re a thousand times better than those two…” Lily said shaking her head and resting her chin on her hand “Either way, I’ll help you out…”

“You what..?”

“I’ll do a little digging on her side...find out how she feels and…”

“Oh, nono…” Lupin said horrified “I don’t think that’s a good idea…”

“What isn’t a good idea?” 

Lupin dropped his ink bottle at the sound of that voice; the ink spread over the parchment leaving like a spider web. Tonks sat down next to him and stared at the stained parchment apologetically. 

“ _ Scourgify _ _ ”  _ she said and the ink returned to the knocked bottle leaving the parchment clean once more and both Lily and Lupin stared in awe. 

“We are not supposed to learn that spell until fourth year…” Lily said impressed “How do you know it?”

“Oh, I’m death clumsy, remember?” Tonks chuckled “It’s a spell I grew up hearing. My mum used it on me multiple times in the day. I just figured out how to use it so that my mum wouldn’t have to…”

“Oh, that...makes sense.” Lupin smiled at her “It is still very impressive that you learned to use it by yourself…”

“Yes? Well...some spells feel...familiar, if that makes sense, so learn them is a little easier…”she chuckled “So...what were you talking about?”

“Nothing…” Lupin replied in haste“How was your lesson?”

“It...was good. Professor McGonagall says I’ve improved…”

“Why are you taking extra lessons?” Lily asked curiously.

“Ehm...well, I’m clumsy. I need a little extra effort sometimes…”

“Oh…”

“Yes, it’s not big deal.” she smiled “I am...not interrupting you...am I?”

“Of course not. I was about to leave…” Lily smiled “You two enjoy yourselves!”

Before Tonks could stop her, Lily had walked away with an amused smile. The Hufflepuff girl turned to Lupin with a confused look, but the boy shook his with a faint smile.

“Don’t mind her. She’s been acting weird…”

“Is she? It must be because of James…”Tonks said resting her chin on his shoulder “he must be driving her crazy…”

“I’ll tell you a secret as long as you promise not to tell…” Lupin smiled at her. 

“You have my Hufflepuff word!” Tonks said making a zipping gesture over her lips. 

Lupin smiled.

“James fancies Evans…”he muttered in her ear “ The problem is, Evans can’t stand him at all…”

Tonks let out a soft giggle. 

“I should have known…”she muttered “You know. Lily does like him a little. Since he stopped bullying Severus, I think he’s grown on her…”

“Heh...I’m sure James would be delighted to hear that.”Lupin chuckled as he picked up his things and stood up.

Tonks followed after him and knocking the chair down and making a loud fuss. Many of the students glared at her as Tonks picked up the chair and  apologised for the noise. Lupin couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Here…” Lupin said offering her his arm “Grab on it before you knock something else.”

“Ha...not sure if I should feel flattered by the the gentleman’s gesture or if I should be offended by the implication…” Tonks chuckled lacing her arm through his.   
“I am only concerned of your wellness. I’m sure you won’t fancy a visit to the Hospital WIng, would you?”

“Eeeg. Nope...I’m all good…” she chuckled “I’ll stick to you and stay safe, then. So...what do we have for our date today?”

“D-d-date?”

“Aha...Our usual reading date at the library…” she replied winking at him and Lupin breathed at ease “So what do we have for today?”

“Well…I’m still reading Alice in Wonderland…”

“Ow! That’s great, we can proceed with our own version. We never finished  writing  Tonks’s  Mischievous Adventures is Hogwarts…”

“I don’t think we ever started…” he chuckled.

“Well, there’s not better time to start, right?”

“Yes, not better time…” he smiled at her and Tonks gave him her usual lovely smile.

Tonks had many expressions; Lupin was amazed about how expressive her pretty face could be, and he had come to learn the meaning behind each. That smile was one of his favorite ones. It was the one she had whenever she was truly happy and he was more than delighted whenever he got that smile from her.


	16. Mistletoe, white rabbits and colours

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas to all!   
> To celebrate the Holidays here's the chapter for Tonks's second Christmas with the Marauders, Lily and Snape.  
> I hope you enjoy it!

"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. " 

—  **Norman Vincent Peale**

 

With the approaching Christmas, most of the students began to leave the school to pass the holidays with their families, but a few had decided to stay behind. Just like the previous year, Tonks was one of the students to choose Hogwarts to expend Christmas.Her parents were going to Wales and, as much as she loved her muggle family, she didn’t felt like going there to listen everyone talk about past christmas when her grandparents were still alive.  

The Marauders, as Sirius and his gang had started calling themselves, Lily and Snape had decided  to stay behind, too. They said that they prefered Christmas in Hogwarts over boring family meetings at home, but deep inside, Tonks suspected they just wanted to stay behind with her. 

The day before Christmas, Tonks sat in the owlery feeding her owl, a barn owl with golden feathers, small bits of christmas biscuits from breakfast. It was a long way from Hogwarts to her family home in Wales and the bird was meant to carry a pretty large package as well, so Tonks made su; they’re valuable so…”

Millie turned her bright black eyes at her like saying: “ _ I’m not clumsy like you, human…” _

“Okay, okay...you don’t need to glare at me like that.” Tonks chuckled tying the package to the owls leg “There...I’m sure Dad will give you some pudding when you get there, or maybe a little bit of turkey, if my uncles and aunts aren’t watching.”

Millie flapped her wings and flew away, leaving Tonks staring a the white scenery in awe. Out suddenly she felt something heavy land on her head with a big thud.

“Close your mouth...unless you want your tongue to get frostbite….”

Tonks rubbed her head and turned around to see Snape calling down his owl, a great horned one who shared his master’s piercing look, and tying down his own package to the bird.

“Well, good morning to you, too…” she said crossing her arms “Fancy meeting you here…”

“It’s a public place, is it not?” Snape replied.

“Yes, of course. It’s just that it is the first time we meet here. It’s usually Remus who comes around at this time…”

“Oh, so rather than surprise, you mean you were disappointed that I was not Lupin?”

“Oh, I didn’t say that…” Tonks rolled her eyes “Not that I don’t like stumbling with Remus. I actually love his company...but that doesn’t meant that casually stumbling with you is bad. We are friends aren’t we?”

“...Are we…? I could have sworn you were just around for me to help you with potions….” Snape said quirking an eyebrow at her as turned to leave the tower.

“Aw, come on, Severus. What do you take me for?”   Tonks cried running behind him “We are friends! You know we are!”

Snape ignored her as he walked down the road with Tonks running after him. So far she was doing well at dodging any potential causes of falls, but her luck took a bad twist when they reached the courtyard. The stone floor was frozen and slippery and when the clumsy girl stepped on it in full speed she slid out of control crashing against Snape’s back and sending both into a pile of snow in a corner of the court.

“For God’s sake  _ Nymphadora _ ! Can’t you walk like a normal human being?” Snape groaned.

“Ah...I’d have to be a normal human being to do that and I’m certainly not…” she laughed “What’s the fun on being normal anyway?”

Snape groaned with irritation; he was about to retort when a full hand of snow hit him right in his face followed by Tonks loud laughter.

“Sorry, Severus...I had to do that…” 

“Very funny…” Snape said cleaning up his face and throwing her some snow.

“Ah...haha, you failed!” Tonks said throwing him another enchanted ball.

“You’ll pay for that…!”

“HOLY HIPPOGRIFFS! SNIVELLUS IS SNOW FIGHTING?! Somebody take a picture!”

Tonks turned around to find Sirius, James, Remus and Peter standing by the castle entrance, unfortunately her distraction caused her to receive a wave of charmed snowballs that hit her from different angles and made her trip into the snow pile once more. 

“Bloody nifflers!” she cried between laughs “That was heavy, Severus!”

“Call it payback…” Snape replied shaking off the snow from his robes. 

“Okay, okay...my bad…”she chuckled, when she looked up she found Lupin offering his helping hand as usual “Always the gentleman. If only I could be a lady once…”

“I consider you a lady one way or another…” he smiled “So, want to explain? I think Sirius is about to go crazy with what we just saw…”

“Oh, he needs to get a hold of himself. It seems I actually managed to use up all of Severus patience for this morning…” she laughed “and he finally fought back....”

“Really? How did that happen?”

“We stumbled with each other on the owlery...I just happened to trip on the frozen tiles and knocked him into the snow piles on our way back. He seemed so hitable on there that I had to throw him a snowball…”

“Fair enough. Well, my friends. We know what to do to get him into the snowball war later…” Sirius grinned.

“Knock him out?” Peter asked.

“Nope, have Tonksie knock him into the snow….”

“Don’t you dare, Black.”

“Oh, come on Snivellus. You  _ were  _ having fun. Look at it like this...it’d be a good way to vent out all that angry energy on use…”

“...if you put it like that….”

“Eh… Sirius, maybe that wasn’t the smartest thing to say…” James snorted.

 

Lupin turned to Tonks shaking his head as Sirius and James were loudly discussing - more like they talked and Snape listened-the advantages of Snowball Wars with Snape. Lupin helped her shake off the snow from her hood.

“Thanks…” Tonks smiled.

“You sure know how to make winter’s morning cheerful…” he smiled “I supposed you were owling your parents?”

“Yes, sending them my present all the way to Wales…”

“Oh, yes. I heard they were visiting Wales for the Holidays.”

“You did? I don’t remember telling you.”

“No, my mother did. It seems they’re planning to meet there since, they’re going to be in the same town…”

“Ah...a nice and cosy coincidence. It’s nice to know our parents get along…” she smiled.

“Yes, I think my mother is quite fond of yours.”

“Mum likes her. It’s funny. One would think that since she’s a muggle they wouldn’t quite connect. Then again, my mum’s partiality to muggles was the main reason she was disowned.”

“Oh….” Lupin said not quite sure how to reply to that.

“Never mind. It’s not a touchy subject. I’m proud of my mum and I’m happy she’s friends with yours…” Tonks chuckled fixing her hood.

Lupin caught a glimpse of her hair and he smiled when he saw the bright teal strands before she had quickly tucked them inside the hood. He was hoping to see her colourful hair fully oneday. Somehow, colourful matched perfectly well.

“You’re going to Hogsmeade?”

“Yes, wish you could come with us.”

“Yeah, next year…” she smiled “In the meantime I’ll get myself cosy on our usual spot.”

“Library gets chilly, don’t forget to get a dry robe. I don’t want to find you like an ice sculpture when I come back…”

“I won’t. I will get my enchanted cloak…” she winked at him “have fun in Hogsmeade…”

“I’ll bring you something…”

“Ha...don’t worry about it. Bring your presence and that’s more than enough...”

Lupin smiled at her and walked away. Tonks watched the group until they had vanished beyond the school gates and entered the castle. She decided to take the long way around  to her dorm so that she could enjoy the decorations that had been set up around the castle. Garlands of spruce were hanging from the tall columns, each on entangled with red ribbons and fairy lights that shone warmly; red candles and christmas wreaths were all over the corridors; the smell of cinnamon and apples filled the air making Tonks feel warm despite the cold winter air. 

“Oh, good morning, Fat Friar!” she said with a smile as she bumped with the ghost at the Hufflepuff Common Room.

“Good morning, Ms. Tonks...a chilly happy morning I hope!”

“As good as it can be, I assure you!”

“Good good...enjoying the decorations?”

“They’re gorgeous this year.”

“Aye, aye…” the Fat Friar giggled “I remember my days on Christmas season. The monastery was always so beautifully decorated that it warmed ye to the bones, either that or a good pint of ale…”

“I’m sure it would…” Tonks nodded with a smile “ This year’s decor is slightly different, is it not?”

“Aye, aye...ye noticed. This year we have gotten some good ol’ mistletoe to spread some love…Thank Filius, that sassy man...” the ghost grinned pointing at the floating branches over their heads that had just appeared over them with soft  _ Pop _ !. “Watch up where and with whom ye’re standing around, lassie...won’t want to get caught in a Yule neb with someone ye don’t want to...haha…”

“I’ll keep that in mind…” 

“However if there’s somebody you want to neb...highly recommend ye to keep an eye up…”

Mistletoe...maybe she should tell James or Lily.  That’d be a good excuse for those too give each other a peck. Tonks say her goodbyes to the Fat Friar and ran up to the dorm to pick up her bewitched cloak and  her most recent book and headed to the library. 

***

Tonks was comfortably wrapped in her cloak and curled into the chair as she read and ate some of the biscuits she’d brought as a snack. She was quite deep into the story and so she didn’t noticed when Lupin walked behind her sit to peek on her novel from over her shoulder.

“Don’t let madam Pince catch you eating here…”

Tonks jumped up startled; her book fell onto the floor with a loud thud and Lupin chuckled. The girl turned to look at him with a pout.

“Wotcher...you could have let me know you were here…”

“Sorry…” he replied picking up her book and sitting by her side. 

Lupin’s face was red due to the icy wind he had been enduring during his visit to town. They had been running around looking for presents; the weather had been quite acceptable at first, but the small blizzard became quite a storm by noon.

“Oh, look at you…” Tonks said cupping his cheeks and Lupin was grateful that his cheeks were already red “You’re freezing and red. Guess weather wasn’t on your side today?”   
“Well, nope. Actually I brought a message from Sirius saying that today’s Snowball war was cancelled due to inclement weather…”

“Inclement weather?” Tonks said cluelessly.

Lupin chuckled. Tonks had probably been cupped in the library the whole time they’d been gone and the girl hadn’t noticed the weather turning into a icy storm outside the castle walls.

“We got quite a storm out there, Tonks…” Lupin explained “We might be reckless, but we’re smart enough not to go out with this snow storm…”

“Oh...I hadn’t noticed.”

“I guessed so. James, Sirius and Peter decided that they wanted to stay in front of the fireplace in the common room. I doubt they’d be moving any time soon.”

“Shouldn’t you be along with them? You’re as cold as the snowman I made yesterday…” Tonks chuckled “And it has nothing to do with the fact that I made it thinking of you…”

“I’m honored to be your inspiration and yes, I am a little cold, but we had an appointment today…”

“A date...appointment makes is sounds like a duty…” Tonks giggled “ How about we share the cloak then? It’ll help you warm up…”

“Eh? No, I’m fine...I mean, I have my own warming spell. I just need a couple minutes…”

“Oh...alright. Well, I can’t say I’m not happy that you came. As much as I was enjoying my book, I was starting to miss you...” 

“You were?” he said surprised.

“ You sound surprised…”

“Well...yes, a little bit.”

“I just enjoy your company a little too much…” she smiled “so it’s easy to miss it when I don’t have it.”

Lupin didn’t reply. He stared at her knowing that she wasn’t lying and smiled. Tonks looked him with her pretty brown eyes and the boy couldn’t help but think of how pretty she was. She wasn’t the kind of pretty girl that was flashy or flirty. Tonks was natural and in many ways simple. She didn’t use accessories besides her infamous hood and the girl fell into Sirius category of cute and ok looking girls. Lupin hadn’t said it, but he had considered that she’d been wrongly put in that category, however after considering it, he had concluded that her assignation had been due to her family status rather than her looks.  

He thought about the few girls he knew, which were more or less his classmates. Lily was pretty, no doubt of that, but she could be a little feisty at times, and some of the other girls were pretty as well, but none of them had really caught his attention immediately and in most cases he’d only noticed because someone had commented on it. With Tonks however, it’d been a little different, though she hadn’t exactly stunned him with her beauty at their first meeting, he had thought that the girl was cute; it wasn’t until later on, as he came to know her, that he began to see her as one of the prettiest girls he’d ever had the fortune to meet. After that it had only taken a wink or smile from her and he had fallen head over heels for her, as Sirius loved to remark.

“Can I tell you something that you might find funny?” Tonks continued.

“Eh, sure…”

“This will sound a little crazy, but...the first time I saw you, all I could think was that you felt awfully familiar…” Tonks said thoughtfully “It’s silly, because I know that time in the train was our very first  meeting. I keep thinking that perhaps we have met each other before in another time and another place…”

“Like a past life you mean?”

“Well, I don’t know. Maybe? It’s just a thought…” Tonks replied tapping her book absently.

Lupin didn’t answer as he reflected on the girl’s words. He’d had that sensation before, too. As if he had known Tonks for far longer than he actually did. It was like feeling a deja vú and not quite alike at the same time. 

“Oh forget it. Maybe I’m thinking too much into this…”

“No, not at all…” Lupin shook his head “Honestly the idea never crossed my mind, but I think...I’ve had the same sensation a few times before...how did you came to that?”

Tonks smiled faintly and raised her book letting him see the letter on the cover:  _ Karma and Rebirth: Bonds that transcend beyond time and space. _

“Is it a muggle book?” he asked taking the tome from her and flipping through its pages. 

“Well, yes and no. The author is a witch, but it seems that this book was originally aimed to muggle audiences. I picked it up because I felt curious”Tonks replied looking at the book “But maybe it’s a little ridiculous after all…”

Lupin leaned back against his seat with his arms crossed over his chest. In fact he didn’t see her thoughts as ridiculous at all.

“No, it isn’t. Actually, I think it is quite interesting. We never think of what happens to us after dying, I mean...some turn into ghosts. We know that, but...what happens with the rest?” Lupin said smiling “Besides...I might like the idea that we knew each other before…”

Tonks laughed  and offered him a biscuit which he accepted gladly. 

“Look at us...talking nonsense and eating biscuits on christmas eve…” she laughed.

“Well, it is too early to go for dinner, anyway.” he replied “and I’m quite comfortable here…”

“I noticed...so how about I read you something?”

“What do you have planned?”

“Well…one of my favorites for christmas eve…” Tonks said jumping up and rushing to one of the shelves.

Lupin watched her as she looked through the tomes tapping each with her finger as she looked for the title she wanted.  When she finally found it, her lips curled into a bright smile as she pulled the thin book out and rushed back to the seat. 

“Dad used to read it for me when I was a younger, and my grandma read it to him and his siblings before…” she smiled.

Tonks coughed to clear her throat and began reading with - in Lupin’s opinion- the sweetest voice he’d ever heard from her. 

_ Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house _ __   
_ Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; _ __   
_ The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, _ __   
_ In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there; _ __   
_ The children were nestled all snug in their beds; _ __   
_ While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; _ __   
_ And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap, _ __   
_ Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap, _ __   
_ When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, _ _   
_ __ I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.

  
  


Lupin knew that book. His own mother would often read it when he was younger. It seemed to be quite popular among muggles during the season. The boy smiled as the girl read on; enjoying each of the ways her voice waved with each verse. By the time she had finished the book, the evening had fallen and Lupin was feeling warm and cosy in more ways than one.

_ “ _ _ And away they all flew like the down of a thistle. But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight—“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!” _

Lupin clapped with a smile. 

“Well, I feel fortunate. This makes skipping the fire in Gryffindor’s common room one thousands times worthier…”

“Ha, I had to give you a good perk, didn’t I? They all missed my fantastic reading of the  _ Twas the night before Christmas.  _ Now you have something to brag about…”

“Oh and I will…”Lupin chuckled.

They laughed happily when a sudden pop made them look up. One of Flitwick’s charmed mistletoes was floating innocently  over them.

“Ah...nifflers, it found us…” Tonks laughed “The Fat Friar warned me about them…”

“Them…?”

“It seems that Flitwick charmed some mistletoes to pop up over any unknowing pairs randomly. He probably thought of it funny…”

“Mistletoe?” Lupin said with wide eyes. 

“Did you know that for the Norse, mistletoe was a symbol of friendship and love? And that believe was carried over by celtic as well?”

“Huh..who told you that?”

“I just read it earlier today…” she laughed “I had a lot of time to read while I waited for you…”

Lupin shook his head not knowing whether to be impressed or amused, but before he could say anything about it. Tonks had leaned over him and pressed her lips against his right cheek.

The boy was too shocked to react; his face had turned bright red and he felt like he had just drunk down three batches of pepperup potions.

“It is also said that it blesses long lasting bonds…” Tonks smiled “Merry Christmas, Remus….”

 

***

On Christmas morning, Lupin woke up to the loud chatter of his roommates. Sirius was immersed in a loud paper wrap war with James as Peter laughed loudly at the pair that jumped from one bed to another throwing the remains of their gift wrappings at each other. 

Lupin wasn’t entirely sure of how he’d managed to go through Christmas Eve dinner and then back to his room the day before, and even now, he could still sense the lingering sensation of Tonks’s lips against his cheek. It had been an innocent kiss, but it was one he knew he’d hardly forget for a while.

“Goood morning, Moony. Merry christmas!” James grinned sending a cascade of wrinkled paper wrap at his face. He was wearing 

Lupin waved off the offending papers and sent them back to his attacker, making James burst into a fit of jolly silly laughter.

“Merry christmas to you, too…” he smiled “not that I fancy waking up to a hit of paper wrap on my face…”

“It’s part of the fun…” Sirius grinned. He was wearing a top hat with a label that read:  _ In this Style 10/6  _ and Lupin already knew who had given him that “Now get up and open your presents before I do it for you!”

Lupin rolled his eyes.

“Keep you hands off my presents, Pads…”

“Fine, Moony. So what do you think of my hat, huh? I think I actually like it. I’m going to start wearing it to classes… just to see how bugged the teachers will get about it. It was Tonksie’s present….”

“Yeah...maybe you understand the idea behind it, because she got me a mug with a weird looking rabbit on it. Design aside, it is actually quite useful since it keeps the drink inside hot or cold depending of what you put in.”

“You tell me...she got me a fresh biscuit keeper jar in the form of a teapot…” Peter said eating up one of the biscuits “Not that I mind. THese are incredible…”

Lupin laughed. Of course they wouldn’t see the joke in the Alice in Wonderland reference, but he did, and he found it hilarious. He guessed that his present would be related to the white rabbit and most likely Lily’s and Snape’s would be something related to the Duchess and the Caterpillar. He chuckled trying to imagine what could she have gotten them. 

His suspicion was proven right when he opened Tonks present to reveal a pretty silver pocket watch with the White Rabbit carved on its top and small note. 

 

_ You’re not one to be late, but you never know. _

_ Besides how are you to be my dear White Rabbit without a watch? _

_ Merry Christmas! _

 

_ Your Alice  _

 

Lupin smiled watching the note and Sirius peeked over his shoulder curiously. He wanted to see what was making his friend smile so much and quirked an eyebrow as he read the note.

“Is that supposed to be some sort of code? And I know she hates her name, but why in Merlin’s pants is she going by Alice now?”

“Ah...that’s a joke between she and I, Pads…”

“Aren’t you going to explain?”  James said drinking from his mug.

“Maybe...maybe not….” Lupin smiled mysteriously.

“Ah...Moony...come on.”

“Shall we  go down for breakfast?” Lupin smirked completely ignoring his friends pleading looks. 

 

When the Marauders entered the Great Hall, they were joyfully received by a blast of confetti and the smell of delicious food.The usual four tables had been replaced with one single table and even the teachers had joined it. 

“Wotcher sleepy heads!”

Lupin heart skip a jump when he heard her voice, but he took a couple deep breaths to calm himself before turning himself at her. He almost tripped with James the moment he saw her. She wasn’t wearing her characteristic hood and instead her hair fell over her shoulder in a beautiful, silky mane of golden locks that contrasted pretty well with the midnight blue cape she was wearing. 

“WAIT...are you blonde?” Sirius snapped “Weren’t you brown haired a couple days ago?”

Tonks shrugged with a playful smile.

“You know...there are ways to change hair color. Beside, mousy brown is a little dull, don’t you think?”

“Woah...what made you drop the hood?” James said surprised.

“Oh, don’t get use to it. It’s only for the special ocassion…”

The truth was that Tonks had decided to take her hood off that morning for two reason, she was actually posing as Alice with the hopes that Lupin would get the joke, and the other reason was that her friends and herself were the only students that had stayed for Christmas and so, even if she was to morph her hair by accident, she just had to tell them the truth.

“...Yeah, it kind of feels weird...honestly…” James said thoughtful “I’m too used to see you hooded. It just feels like I’m seeing someone else.”

“Oh, hush Potter…” Lily said resting her hands on Tonks’s shoulders “She’s looking wonderful...Even Severus said so…”

“I didn’t…I just said she looked normal without her hood…”

“Which coming from you, Snivellus, it is complete flattery…” Sirius grinned “you looking good, cous.... I like it.”

“Thanks, Sirius. I take you liked my present?”

“Ha...loved it. Makes me look fancy, doesn’t it?”

“Oh, yes it does. I knew it’d suit you.” Tonks laughed winking at Lupin who smiled shaking his head.

“Let’s go eat, shall we?” Peter said enthusiastically. 

The group headed to their seats and Lupin took that chance to catch up with Tonks before she sat down. The girl stared at him with smile and he noticed that her usual dark eyes were slightly lighter too. She had done subtle change on herself and he was pretty sure most people wouldn’t have noticed easily; in fact he wouldn’t have noticed if he wasn’t so smitten with her.

“So...what do you think? Blonde suits me?” she smiled at him playfully.

“Honestly.... It suits you too well…” he chuckled picking one of her blonde locks “It’s going to be a pity when the hood comes back.”

“Mmm...I might consider taking it off on special occasions…” she laughed “Liked my gift?”

Lupin pulled out the pocket watch out from the pockets of his trousers and smiled.

“Very appropriate for our story…”he smiled “I just wondered about what in heaven you got Evans and Snape.”

“Oh...I got Lily a cute necklace with a cheshire cat that throws out random quotes and for Severus I got him a pet Gungan caterpillar…”

“You...got Snape a caterpillar?” Lupin said shocked as he sat down at the table.

“Haha, not  _ any _ caterpillar; a Gungan caterpillar. I had to ask my dad to catch one for me. They feed of deadly nightshade and its silk are very precious in potion making. My mum had a small plague a few months ago and the thing happens to look a lot like the blue caterpillar.Severus didn’t say it, but I know he was pleased with the thing…”

Lupin laughed. Tonks would never stop surprising him with her creativity. He had to agree a little with James, Tonks looked lovely with her blonde hair and she’d definitely make a pretty adorable Alice if she was wearing the proper dress; but she did look a little too different from her usual self. 

“So, Mr. White Rabbit...do you think we can eat up these tarts or the Queen of Hearts will come running at us and try to cut our heads?”

“I don’t see her around, so I think…” Lupin smiled at her “ We totally should…”

Tonks and Lupin laughed. The best part of that christmas wasn’t their presents, but each other’s company. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yep, a tiny lovely kiss in the cheek and many references to Alice in Wonderland <3.  
> I hope you all had a lovely christmas among loved ones. Unfortunately most of my christmas are spend alone. This year I had the company of the characters of this fics however.  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter and will keep looking forward to this story!


	17. Truths or reveals

"One of the deep secrets of life is that all that is really worth the doing is what we do for others." 

—  **Lewis Carroll**

  
  


The bad part of christmas is that once it ends, everything seems to speed up. The last few months of Tonk’s second year flew by in blink between classes, work and constant visits to the hospital wing either because of her clumsiness or for another relapse of her unknown illness who had grown more frequent. Tonks had noticed a few things about it, but not even Madam Pomfrey knew the answers to her questions.

The unexplainable disease hit her on days of full moon on alternate months. The few days before full moon would serve as a set up for her symptoms, she’d start feeling the weakness, the nausea and pulsating headache until they reached an- almost- unbearable level when the moon reached its fullest, only to fade off  as the moon waned. Lupin had taken the habit of staying with her during those times, except during the full moon, and Tonks was more and more convinced that Lupin was, indeed, a werewolf, but not any werewolf, but Mr. Wolfie. She had long suspected that Mr. Wolfie wasn’t a normal wolf after all.

This month was one of the good ones. Tonks didn’t feel sick and she had enjoyed her night out with Mr. Wolfie during the full moon. She had ran of to meet Lupin the morning after the full moon, with a bag full of chocolates that she had almost force fed him. He seemed tired, but she had to admit, that compared to other times, he looked a lot better. 

After Christmas, Tonks had come to an epiphany and realized that she had developed a massive crush on the Gryffindor boy without even realizing it. Normal girls would express their infatuation with flirty looks, shy smiles and flushed cheeks with silly giggles, but Tonks wasn’t a normal girl, and Lupin was- most likely- not a normal boy either. As a result, Tonks infatuation was translated into continuous concerns about his well being and sweet comments in defense werewolves that would draw a fond smile from the boy when he thought she wasn’t looking.

 

A day before the end of the term, the pair were in the library, sitting comfortably in their usual spot in the most abandoned section of the whole place, enjoying each other company more than what they would show out. Tonks was pacing in front of the shelves, checking the titles; she had made an habit to wear her hood down when they were alone, mostly because Lupin seemed to like when she did. She hadn’t told him she was a Metamorphmagus, but he was smart enough to figure it out or, if her suspicion was correct, he already knew since it had been pretty much the first thing she had told Mr. Wolfie when they met. Today, she was wearing her hair in a roasted copper with short waves that framed her face in quite elegant way. 

“Interesting choice …” Lupin said with an amused look when she finally sat down with a book “I am still waiting for you to tell me how you do it…”

“Oh, considering how clever you are, I thought you would figure it out.”

“Well, I thought it was a spell, but you already refuted that. I am afraid I am running out of ideas...” he smiled. He wasn’t going to say he knew exactly how she did it, so he choose to play the ignorant part instead. 

Tonks rolled her eyes. 

“Oh fine...I’ll tell you…” she giggled “it’s not a spell, nor a potion. I…- Listen carefully now - am a  _ Metamorphmagus.” _

Lupin stared at her in surprise. It was real surprise, only that it wasn’t about her being a Metamorphmagus, but because she had said the truth straight and without second thoughts. He hadn’t expected her to answer so openly. 

“ A Metamorphmagus? Wow, that’s... amazing.  I mean, I’ve read a few things about them and they’re so...rare…”

“Yes, I know. I’ve been told that a few times. I was born one, but I’m still learning to control it...especially with my hair…” Tonks said pointing at her head. At that instant, her hair turned from copper to bubble gum pink which was -in Remus opinion- his favorite “ Sometimes it changes itself with my mood. I can do lots of things with my face, too; but I’m still working on changing body parts. McGonagall says we’ll work on that next year…”

“So that’s what the private lessons were for…” 

“Yup...now let’s keep it between us for now. I’m not quite ready to let the rest of the school know what I am and knowing Sirius, he won’t last two hours before she shouts it proudly around..”

The girl wrinkled her face in concentration and suddenly her face features began to change into Sirius’s handsome ones. Lupin knew she was probably able to do that, but he couldn’t help, but feel very much impressed.

“Hey listen up losers…” she said in a very accurate impression of her cousin “Leave my cous alones cuz she’s ten thousands times cooler than any of you piled together. She’s an Metamorphmagus, did you know? Yes...yes...go and figure out what that is and you’ll see how cool she is!”

“I can somehow picture him saying it like that, even without your perfect graphic demonstration…” Lupin laughed as Tonks shook her head and Sirius face faded into her own; the black hair slowly turning pink from the roots to the tips.

“It isn’t exactly perfect…” she laughed “but it kind of works. You get my point though?”

Lupin knew far to well; Sirius was a talented person, but discretion was never part of his list. I had taken him a lot of effort to keep Sirius from spilling the beans about his conditions by accident and even now, the boy could make some alarming comments out loud. James wasn’t as bad as Sirius and Peter was actually gossiper, but a discrete one.

“I won’t tell any of them, but why did you tell me? As far as I know you could have told me you used a spell…”

Tonks smiled at him shaking her head and making the pink curls fall over her face.

“ That’s obvious. I told you because I trust you, silly…” she said tucking the pink locks behind her ear. She meant it. She wasn’t expecting him to tell her about his little issue, but she was offering him her secret as a gesture of confidence. 

Her words seemed to sink into Lupin with a conflicting weight. A side of him wanted to tell her the truth about himself, but the other wanted to keep it secret for fear. The conflictive thoughts must have shown on his face, because suddenly he felt Tonks brushing his hair in a soothing manner.

“It’s alright if there are things you don’t want to tell me…” she whispered with a smile “ I just hope that someday you’ll feel confident enough to do it.”

“I...I don’t...it’s just that I can’t...”

“Hey, it’s alright. I don’t need to know if you don’t want me to.” she smiled at him with the same lovely smile he liked so much “Oh, I can’t believe the school year is about to end...can you?”

She was changing the subject and he felt so grateful for her incredible sense understanding. Tonks could tell he wasn’t comfortable talking about the subject, in fact he was having a very deep inner debate over it, and when others would have tried to press further for answers - he’d gone through that with his friends-, she didn’t. The girl simply smiled and changed the topic to make him feel at ease. Could she be any more perfect?

“Yeah, feels like yesterday when we started the year…”

“No joke, you’re almost officially a fourth year.”

“And you a third. I did hear professor Sprout bragging about your grades…” Lupin chuckled “It seems you’re doing really well…”

“I owe that to you and Severus…” she chuckled “I’ve done lots of studying. I look forward the summer…”

“Yes, I think we all need a rest…”

“What are you planning for summer? Sirius is considering whether he’ll come over again or if he’ll get to the Potter’s this time.”

“I still don’t know. I suppose I should see what my parents have planned. I’m sure I could persuade them to visit at least once. My mother would oblige delightly...” 

“Hopefully you will. There’s only so much I can do on my own for three months, you know?”

“I am sure you can get creative…” Lupin replied with a smile, but the smile fell a little as he spoke next “I hope you don’t get sick during the summer though.”

“Oh, it’s okay. Madam Pomfrey already spoke to my mum about it. My mum is a healer so she’ll handle whatever comes. Who knows...maybe nothing will happen at all. You should take care, too…”

Tonks looked at him with a reassuring smile and Lupin hoped she was right.

 

***

 

Andromeda had been horrified when Poppy Pomfrey’s head appeared between the flames of their fireplace summoning her to Hogwarts. The woman had flooed to the school immediately and was pacing around Dumbledore’s office restlessly. Madam Pomfrey had told her that it was important to discuss her daughter’s health care for the summer since she’d be away from the nurse’s watchful eye and Andromeda had paled.

“Ah, Andromeda. My apologies for making you wait…” Dumbledore said with a smile as he stepped into the room followed by McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey “With the school term ending, things tend to get a little hazy. Please, take a seat. Hows Edward?”

“Ted is doing well. He wanted to come, but I didn’t want to wait…” Andromeda answered sitting down in front of the desk “Is Nymphadora alright?”

“She’s currently very well, I should say. I saw her chasing off some Slytherins that were trying to bully Ms. Evans about her lineage…” McGonagall said with a smile “She has quite a temper…”

“I’m sure she does. Want it or not, she’s still a Black....” Andromeda sighed “How long has she been sick?”

“Not regularly. It’s more like episodic cases…” Madam Pomfrey explained “ High fever, headaches and nausea, mostly around…”

“Full moon…” Andromeda finished.

“...Correct…” Madam Pomfrey replied with a frown.

“It is safe to assume that it isn’t new?”Dumbledore asked and Andromeda nodded with a sigh.

“It has happened before. When she was much younger…” she replied “it was sporadic thing. It didn’t happen that frequently. It usually happened after she had very bad nightmares. It sort of stopped after her ninth birthday.”

“ I’m afraid that she has began to suffer it again…” Dumbledore said with a worried look.

“Since when?”

“November. It’s been alternating between months…”

Andromeda pinched the bridge of her nose trying push down the wave of anger that had suddenly hit her. Her daughter had been suffering an unexplainable disease for the past 8 months and they hadn’t had the sensitivity to tell them? Nymphadora was a good child, she knew the girl wouldn’t mention it for fear of worrying them too much.

“I have to ask, Andromeda, by any chance do you know the cause?” Dumbledore said gently.

“If I did, I would have tried to fixed long ago…” she replied in annoyance “Uh...I’m sorry. I didn’t intended to be rude, I’m just...worried.”

“It’s alright, Andromeda. We understand…” McGonagall said putting a hand over her shoulders.

“I asked around and even took her to St. Mungos when she was younger, the answer always was the same.  She was perfectly healthy, but what healthy child spends the night burning in fever and in pain? Ted and I were frantic, when it stopped… we were more than joyous. To think that it’d come back…”

“You said she’d get sick after having very bad nightmares. Do you happen to know what sort of nightmares?”

“I’m afraid not…” Andromeda said “She was but a baby. She couldn’t say much, we only knew because she would wake up crying terribly and a few hours later, the fever would start…”

“Always around full moon…” Dumbledore said.

“Yes...always around the full moon…” Andromeda said staring at the the headmaster’s blue eyes “Is that...relevant?”

Dumbledore, McGonagall and Pomfrey exchanged looks in silence. Andromeda knew that silence well enough; the words that would come next weren’t something she was looking forward to hear. 

“We...have a suspicion, Andromeda…” McGonagall said “Of course it is only a suspicion…”

“What?” Andromeda said with wide eyes “With all due respect, but please stop staring at each other like that and tell me what do you suspect is wrong with my daughter…”

Dumbledore let out a soft chuckle.

“Ah, Blacks never shone by their patience…” he said gently “ This is only a suspicion, but I fear that Nymphadora might be ….cursed.”

“Cursed? What? Why?” Andromeda said standing up from her seat and starting to pace through the room “No, that’s not possible. She’s lived well so far...why would you say she is cursed?”

“Like I said Andromeda. It is only a suspicion that we are going to look through. I might be wrong, but wouldn’t you feel better if we looked into it?”

“....What do you...suggest?”

“I have an old friend. He has experience with curses...I want to discuss the case with him, with your permission of course.”

Andromeda bit her lower lip in thought. It was the same gesture that Tonks did each time she was thinking of something. 

“If it is for her sake, I agree…” Andromeda replied sitting down once more “Has it...has it been bad?”

“It’s gotten a little worse recently…” Madam Pomfrey explained “her friends have been quite diligent when it comes to taking care of her, especially Mr. Lupin…” 

“Young Remus, huh? I like that boy…” Andromeda smiled “It’s a pity what happened to him.”

“So, you’re aware of his...condition?” Dumbledore said surprised.

“We are…” Andromeda replied “Nymphadora did write to us telling us her suspicions. We were later confirmed by his parents. Of course, we haven’t told Nymphadora about it, but I see no wrong about that. The boy is well taught and much more a gentleman compared to my own baby cousin, if you ask me. There’s no point on judging him for something he’s no control over…”

“No, surprise you daughter seems to be so open in favor of werewolf’s rights…” McGonagall almost smirked.

“Oh, no...believe me, Minerva. Her particular opinions have nothing to do with us, as matter of fact, it might be her influence that made us so accepting.”  Andromeda replied “She’s always been partial to werewolves since she learned how to speak. You should have heard when she was five demanding to know why the wolf had to be a the  bad fellow in one of those muggle stories that my husband loved to read for her before bed. I don’t think I ever saw Ted so lost of words…”

“Ah, Nymphadora is a special girl, no doubt “ Dumbledore smiled.

“She might be exactly what Mr. Lupin needs. As her head of House, Andromeda, I’m grateful that you’re willing to allow their friendship...”

“Believe me, Minerva. I wouldn’t even consider interfering, not like it’d make any difference if I did…” Andromeda chuckled “If there’s something that Nymphadora got from the Black and Tonks family, it’s her stubbornness. I warn you before hand…”

McGonagall smiled. 

“Besides...I know how bad it is to be an outcast.” Andromeda added “For him to go through that since a young age…”

“Mr. Lupin has had a difficult life…” Dumbledore agreed “He does seem to be a little better now, though…Tonks is quite an influence. A Black trait, no doubt. Did you know the girl managed to turn a bunch of students that, couldn’t stand each other during their whole first year, into friends?”

“She did?”

“Mr. Snape is even willing to help Black and Potter in their mischieves now…” McGonagall said amused “Quite an achievement considering that those three couldn’t stay in the same room without hexing each other at first.”

“Ah...that must be Severus…” Andromeda said recalling one of the letters from her daughter. The most recent one, asking if there were still Gungan caterpillars in the orchard since she wanted to make one a present for her friend “Another nice boy I assume from Nymphadora’s letters. Well her attentiveness  is certainly a Tonks’s trait. My family never shone for their tolerance regarding those that were unlike them…”

“Regarding your family, Andromeda…” Dumbledore expression suddenly darkened “has it been any other signs of threat after what happened to your in-laws?”

Andromeda let out a bitter smirk.

“None, so far; but I know Bella. She won’t be happy until she has seen through her little project. We have taken measures already. Setting up barriers around our home, just in case. Ted is concerned about his muggle family, however…”

“That is another of the reasons I summoned you here…” Dumbledore said “ i presume that you’re aware that Bellatrix isn’t working on her own accord…”

“Ted and I have our guesses. We’ve heard rumours circling around...a dark wizard working behind stages…” Andromeda said crossing her arms “Someone pushing for the Solemn Blood Purity Supremacy. The Prophet has barely covered half of the deaths that happen these days...most of them half bloods or muggleborns…”

“I am afraid that you’re right. There is a man who’s thirsty for power. A very dangerous wizard, I dare say. Your status as a blood traitor puts you and your family in big danger…”

“There’s nothing we can do. I already took a lot from Nymphadora’s childhood hiding away from my family...I won’t take anything more, professor…” Andromeda said solemnly.

“And I’m not asking you to do anything like that. No, on the contrary. I want to offer you an alternative…”

“Alternative…?”

“The threat the Voldemort represents for both the Magical Community and the Muggle Community is growing and I’m afraid the Ministry isn’t taking it as serious as they should. I...have gathered a group. A selected few, the Order of the Phoenix,  with the hopes of working in secret to reduce the strength that Voldemort is starting to gain…”

“And you’re hoping that Ted and I will join…” Andromeda concluded. 

“That...would be the ideal case, however...if you decided to decline, I’m offering you the Order’s protection…”

“Why? It’s is not like we are in any way crucial for either side. Bellatrix is only offer us because of her stupid resentment...” she asked. Being a member of the Black lineage had taught  Andromeda that everything always had an ulterior motif and even though she knew Dumbledore wasn’t like her family, it was a habit difficult to forget.

“On the contrary, I am sure that you and Edward would prove to be invaluable to our cause…” Dumbledore smile “ but like I said, we aren’t forcing you to join, however, we do  want you and your family to be safe.”

Andromed sighed and fixed up her shawl. She wouldn’t make a decision without consulting her husband first, but then again, she already knew what Ted would answer.

“I shall discuss it with Ted first.”

“Naturally…” Dumbledore nodded “Very well, Andromeda. I will contact my old friend regarding Nymphadora situation and I will contact you as soon as I have any information…”

“That...would be appreciated.”   
“Now, I imagine you’d like to see your daughter. Minerva and Poppy shall take you to her. Poppy can give you the details of what she’s been doing during Nymphadora’s relapses…”

Andromeda stood up from her seat with the grace and the dignity of a Black; a gift that, unfortunately, seemed to have skipped her daughter. With a formal gesture of her head, Andromeda 

addressed Dumbledore one last time before leaving the office with McGonagall and Pomfrey.

 

***

“Mum?” Tonks said shocked when she entered McGonagall’s office “What are you doing here?”

“Nymphadora, is that how you greet your mother?”

“Uh...sorry. Hello mum, what are you doing here?”

Andromeda rolled her eyes, but smiled nevertheless as her daughter hugged her. 

“I’m here for you, what else? How come you forgot to mention that you have been sick a few times, in your letters?” Andromeda said with a stern look.

Tonks flinched a little. 

“I...I...just...didn’t think I should worry you with it. It wasn’t a big deal and I am doing okay? Look!” Tonks said spinning in front of her with a smile. Andromeda quirked an eyebrow and shook her head. She could hear McGonagall chuckled behind her. 

“Ah...you’re lucky you are such an adorable girl…” Andromeda smiled patting her daughter’s head “but still, honey, we’re your parents. Taking care of you and worrying is pretty much part of the job. Especially if it concerns your health...”

“Sorry…”

“Now...Professor McGonagall was telling me about your improvements with that little gift of yours…”

“I’ve worked hard like I promised, mum…”

“Oh, yes..yes. So I heard…” Andromeda smiled “I also heard that you’re taking extra lessons with other subjects as well…”

“Oh, well dad did say I should take any opportunity that could raise my chances for a better future…” 

“Oh, and there I thought you never paid attention to what your dad says…” Andromeda chuckled “I knew you were doing some extra hours with professor Slughorn, but now with professor Sprout as well? What are you going to add next year?”

“Well, if you ask for my opinion…” McGonagall smiled “Charms or Defense Against the Dark Arts would be very good choices…”

Tonks laughed.

“Does tutoring with an older student counts? Because Remus has been helping me with DADA, so I guess I should aim for charms next year...” Tonks smiled playfully.

“What?”

“Ah, Mr. Lupin happens to be one of the best students in DADA…” McGonagall chuckled“Yes, I think it counts, Ms. Tonks…”

“Then it’s settled. Charms it is…” 

“Oh, sweet heaven. Nymphadora, aren’t you pushing it a little too much?” Andromeda laughed softly “At this rate, you’ll need a time- turner to keep up with all your activities…”

“Time-turners are a mess. I don’t really want one, thank you…”

“Fool..” Andromeda chuckled putting her arm around her daughter’s shoulders “Well, honey. I was talking to Professor McGonagall and considering that you’re supposed to leave tomorrow, she said it’d be alright if you came home with me tonight after the Closing Banquet.”

“Mmm...supposed it makes sense. Our home is closer to Hogwarts than to London. Not much sense of going all the way to King Cross…” Tonks reasoned “Alright. I’ll just have to say goodbye to everyone after the feast Are you coming too?”

“Oh no, honey. I doubt my presence in the Great Hall will be appropriate. I’ll stay around …”

“Ah, nonsense, Andromeda, you’ll be more than welcome to join us…” McGonagall assured her.

“I appreciate it, Minerva, but I think I’ll stay in the Hospital Wing and ask Poppy to let me look at Nymphadora’s file.”

“Are you sure, mum?”

“Yes, you have fun…”

“Very well, then.  Ms. Tonks it’s about time we head to the Great Hall…”

“Yes, professor McGonagall. I’ll see you later mum.”

Tonks waved at Andromeda enthusiastically before taking different ways. The Great Hall was starting to get filled with students; but Tonks caught a glimpse of her friends and managed to squeeze between the sea of students. 

“Tonksie! There you are…” Sirius grinned “I heard from Moony that you were called by McGonagall. Did something happen?”

“Nothing at all..” she replied “Just my mum. She came by to talk to Madam Pomfrey…”

“Ah, Mrs. Tonks is here?” Lupin said “I should greet her.”

“You’ll get  your chance, Remus…” Tonks giggled “Actually...That’s what I was planning to tell you. Since my mum is here and it’d be a bit stupid to head all the way to London tomorrow, I’ll be leaving after the banquet.”

“You won’t be with us in the train then?” Lily said a little disappointed.

“No, I’m sorry you’ll have to survive the trip surrounded by -mostly- brainless boys on your own…”she chuckled.

“I think I can manage…”Lily chuckled “but I won’t have my gossiping companion…”

“Sure you can gossip with Severus…”

“What makes you think I’m interested in that anyway?”

“Well, you are pretty good at fake listening anyway so...what’s the difference?”

“Fake listening?” Lily asked.

“He does it all the time with me. Like he seems to be listening, but he’s not…” Tonks shrugged “It’s a little rude actually…”

Snape rolled his eyes.

“Ah hah...well, it’d be less fun without you, but I guess it can’t be helped.” Sirius said “I agree with Moony, though. I should greet Andromeda properly as well. So do you mind if I come to your farewell party?”

“Mum is not fond of parties, but be my guest. We’ll be flooing home from McGonagall’s office, so you are all invited to come say hi...or bye...or whatever…”

“Oh, I’d like to meet your mum…” Lily said enthusiastically “Can I come too?”

“Sure!” Tonks smiled “Well gotta head to my table..come on Severus!”

“Me?”

“Dah...your table is next to mine...you’re heading that way anyway…”

“And what makes you think I’d want to go with you?”

“Because I’m your friend?”

“...”

“Because….you sort of like me?”

“....”

“Oh, fine; because if I happen to mess up, which is probable, you’ll be the first one to witness it and laugh into your heart’s content…”

“... If you put it like that…”

“See how he treats me…?” Tonks said with a mock offended voice that drew a smile in Lupin’s face “Anyway…don’t eat too much lions!”

Tonks smiled at them and turned around in rush crashing with a group of fourth years that were just entering the hall. After giving them a quite clumsy apology and glaring at a snickering Snape, the Hufflepuff and the Slytherin  went off to their tables.

“Honestly I don’t know how anyone can be that clumsy…” Sirius laughed sitting down. 

“Clumsy as she is...I heard she hit the top in most of her classes…” James said “I heard the second years commenting about it…”

“She’s pretty clever…” Lupin said “I helped her with DADA and she’s very talented…”

“You don’t say. If she’s that talented why would she need the tutoring?” Sirius said winking at him.

“Just another excuse to spend time with Moony…” Peter laughed and Lupin rolled his eyes.  

“A clever excuse…” James nodded “Hey I should try that with Evans…”

“Good luck with that Prongs…” Sirius said raising his cup at him “Now...who wants to bet on what will Tonksie knock during dinner?”

 

Hufflepuff won the the House Cups with 2 points over Slytherin and the Great Hall burst into a wave of black and yellow, with the cheers from its students. The group of Gryffindor friends laughed soundly when they saw Tonks knocking her cup over the Hufflepuff prefect by accident. The older girl had glared at Tonks before moving away and Tonks had sighed in defeat. The rest of the dinner went off uneventful and when the student body began to leave the hall anxious to get into bed, Tonks made her way to the teachers table.

“Ah...just a minute, Ms. Tonks…” McGonagall smiled. 

“No worries, Professor…”

“Ah, I heard you are leaving school earlier than the rest of the students…” Professor Sprout smiled “Minerva was telling me just now that your mother had come to see Professor Dumbledore…”

“Yes, professor Sprout.”

“I told her to join us for dinner, but she declined the offer…” McGonagall explained.

“What a pity. I wanted to ask how were the bulbs doing, well I guess it’ll be in another occasion…”

“Yes, Pomona. I must go now, Andromeda and Ms. Tonks here will be using my fireplace to go home.”

“Ah of course. Very well, I’ll see you next term, Tonks. Stay out of troubles…”

“Yes, ma’m. I hope you have a nice summer...”

Tonks walked behind professor McGonagall and left the Great Hall just to find the Marauders, Lily and Snape waiting in the corridor. McGonagall wasn’t surprised, instead she seemed slightly amused at the strange picture that a group of Gryffindors in the company of a Slytherin waiting for a Hufflepuff made. Relations between houses weren’t rare, in fact, as teacher it was very much encourage, but usually students wouldn’t form strong attachments to students from other houses, especially Slytherins and Gryffindors.

“Good evening professor…” Lily was the one to speak “we wanted to see Tonks off, since she won’t be with us in the station tomorrow...would it be alright?”

“I don’t see why not…” McGonagall smiled “We will have to make a stop in the Hospital Wing first. I assume your mother must be having a nice evening chat with Poppy…”

“Knowing mum...they are fanning about potions and other healer things…” Tonks shrugged.

“That, Nymphadora, is called sharing knowledge…” 

Andromeda was walking to them with Madam Pomfrey. Both women seemed happy and Tonks guessed that they had enjoyed their little gathering.

“When you are older and have colleagues, you’ll see how much of an enriching experience it is…” Andromed rested her hand on her daughter’s shoulder and saw the group of boys and girl that stood in front of her. “ Hello, Sirius and Remus. It’s wonderful to see you well. I assume the new faces are your famous friends?”

“Yup… they are. This is James and Peter, part of Sirius and Remus’s infamous gan; this is Lily, the loveliest girl you’ll ever meet and that’s Severus...don’t let him fool you with his grumpiness, mum.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t. As a fellow Slytherin I know better than to trust appearances. Not all of us are a bag of snobish, grumpy folk…” Andromeda smiled “It’s a pleasure to meet you all. I am Andromeda Tonks, Nymphadora’s mother…”

Andromeda ignored the grimm look her daughter gave her at the use of her name.

“Thank you for taking care of my girl and I apologise for any inconvenience that my daughter’s lack of grace might have caused you…”

“Mum…”

“Oh, no at all. She’s never caused any inconvenience…” Lily smiled.

“Except bumping with me and messing around a lot…” Snape shrugged and Lily elbowed him.

“See...the loveliest person ever…” Tonks said rolling her eyes dramatically “Slytherins have a very particular sense of humor….”

“Nymphadora…”Andromeda chuckled.

“Add up the unnecessary preference of using my first name, too.  Do you know Severus insist of using it too?”

“It’s your name…” both Snape and Andromeda said at the same time.

The group of Gryffindors - including McGonagall- let out a soft laugh.

“See? It  _ is _ a Slytherin thing…”

“Yes, sweetheart. The proper use of the words  _ is _ a Slytherin thing. Nymphadora has told me much about all of you. Feel free to come and visit us during summer. I am sure we have enough spare rooms or in the worse of the cases, you can all camp out in the garden…”

“Don’t mind me if I take on that invitation, Andromeda…” Sirius grinned.

“Oh, naturally, Sirius. As a matter of fact...I was pretty sure you would have shown up with or without the invitation…”

“Whatever it takes to be away from that torture house, cous….whatever.”

“Understandable. You’ll always have a room in our home, Sirius. We white sheeps from the house of Black must support each other…” Andromeda nodded “Oh, Remus. Send your mother my best regards. Tell her that I’d be more than delighted to have her for tea any time…”

“I am sure she’ll be pleased, too, Mrs. Tonks…” Lupin smiled politely.

“Very well. I’m sorry that our meeting has to be brief, but it is getting late and my dear husband must be growing restless…”

“I’ll see you all around.” Tonks said waving at her friends.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to drag everyone to visit at some point…” Sirius grinned “Bye cous!”

With that, both Andromeda and Tonks said their good-byes as they stepped into McGonagall’s office.  


	18. A warning

"The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore."    
— Vincent van Gogh

 

Tonks had decided to go for a walk that warm morning. The first months of summer vacation were  quiet and uneventful. She’d visited the town with her mother and accompanied her father to London to pick up a few books he needed for one of his podcasts, but besides that she had done pretty much nothing.

She had received many letters from her friends; the last letter from Sirius said that he planned to visit next month and he’d drag James and Peter with him and that, if he could, he’d bring Lily and Snivellus as well. She wondered why the boy had forgotten to mention Remus in the letter, but figured that SIrius probably assumed Lupin would visit without having to “be dragged”. Lupin’s last letter arrived a few minutes after Sirius’s; he was a little disappointed that he wouldn’t be able to see her as soon as he would have liked since his family would go on a trip for while. His dad was researching some sort of specter that had been seen in few of ruins in the Highlands of Scotland. Tonks was a little disappointed that she wouldn’t be seeing Lupin in a while, but she was sure that the boy would have fun learning things with his dad; so she had scribbled him a quick letter.

 

_ Dear Remus, _

 

_ Oh, Scotland sounds like a nice trip. Especially the Highlands! I went to London with my dad a few days ago and I was reading a book that talked about the Highlands and all the magic centers, so I’m not surprised your dad wanted to check it out. Specters sound dangerous though, so make sure to stay safe.  _

_ Don’t worry, because I don’t mind. If we don’t get to see each other until the start of school, I’ll survive, but if you don’t want me to be mad, you need to promise me you’ll have lots of fun while you’re there and that you’ll make sure to bring me a souvenir! Even if it is a stone from somewhere! _

_ Sirius and the other might be coming to visit, god knows when, but it’s okay. I’m finding myself things to do around. _

_ I’m helping out with the plants in mum’s orchard. Those extra hours with Professor Sprout are paying off! Mum seems pleased. I’m also starting to do my own gatherings of potions around the moor and the forest. I’ll be helping mum brew some of her healing draughts soon. I think that learning about my Outstanding in potions this year has made her trust me enough to let me help. _

_ I know you’ll be having fun chasing supernatural and scary beings around those ruins, but make sure to write alright? Just to let me know you’re safe and sound! _

 

_ Yours,  _

_ Tonks _

 

Tonks had tied the letter to the owl’s leg and sent it off before leaving on her little excursion. Her parents didn’t like her wandering off too far on her own, but as long as she stayed inside the barriers that her parents had set up around the area - which was quite extensive- if was okay for her to do as she pleased and Tonks was alright with the arrangement.

She had been walking for about 3 hours when she found a patch of wild sage and thyme. Her mother kept a trimmed and cared version of them in their orchard, but magical properties could vary depending of the area where it grew and according to Snape, plants grown in the wild were double or even thrice effective than those grown in greenhouses.

The girl was cutting off some branches of the bush when she heard the soft crack of a broken branch. When she raised her head she saw her mother standing a few steps from her. 

“Oh, mum!” Tonks smiled “Look! I found…”

But Tonks never got to say what she had found. Her mother had raised a wand sending a ray of red light at her; a spell, Tonks had guessed that barely missed her by a few inches.  The girl fell on her butt with a horrified look.Her mother was attacking her and she couldn’t understand why; but her doubts were solved when the woman stepped out from the shadows of the forest. THe woman  _ did _ look awfully like her mum, but it wasn’t her. Her mother’s hair was always kept neat and her curls were a little more wavy; the woman in front of her had messy curls and a glint of coldness in her eyes that was very different from her mother’s kind ones.

“...oh, oh...didn’t expect to find you so soon. I’d have thought my sister would be a little more careful about where she let her mutt go…” the woman said with with cold smirk “Don’t worry, little mutt….I won’t kill you immediately. Where’s the fun in that…?”

Tonks pushed herself away from the woman. She let out a snort as she stepped closer to her. Tonks wasn’t sure who this woman was, but something in her gut was telling her to grab her wand and be ready to fight. However, she was a barely a child, what chances did she stand fighting against a grown witch with tons of experience compared to hers? The girl should have been terrified, but surprisingly, she was rather calm as she gripped the wand inside of her robe.

“What? Don’t you recognize your dear aunt Bella? Or Andromeda never bothered to let you know about me?”

Her aunt Bellatrix, that certainly explained why she had tried to stun her with a spell. She had never seen Bellatrix, Tonks only knew about her from her mum’s stories and her father’s bitter remembrances; all she knew was that Bellatrix hated muggleborns; especially her father and she was craving for an opportunity to “punish” her sister for betraying the family’s honor. 

But the magic barriers around their house were supposed to prevent Bellatrix or any Black that meant harm to the family from finding them. How had she found her?

“No talking…?” Bellatrix said caressing her wand “Hasn’t my sister taught you that when you’re asked a question...you must respond!?”

Out of sudden Bellatrix sent another jinx on her direction, but with a speed that Tonks had no idea she had, the girl dodged the spell and ran into cover behind a tree. Bellatrix broke into a loud  shout of laughter that echoed in the forest. 

“So you want to play, little mutt?” she sissed “ah, yes, yes… let’s make this more fun then. A cat and mouse game it’ll be…”

Tonks bit down her lip. When she had left that morning, she hadn’t planned to end up meeting with her crazy psychopath aun in a situation that had only two choices: take a risk and fight or try an escape.

“Let’s see, let’s see…” Bellatrix said maliciously “are you in...here?”

Tonks heard a loud explosion followed by  the sound of a tree falling. Bellatrix was blowing up the trees and it’d be a matter of time before she blowed up the one that Tonks was using as cover. The girl looked at woman from her hideout paying attention to her movements. She needed a opening to run. When Bellatrix back was a at her Tonks thought it was her chance to run, but instead she found herself raising her wand a whispering:

“ _ Stupefy!” _

The red beam came out from her wand hitting the woman directly in her back and sent her flying against a tree. Tonks stared at her raised wand dumbfounded. Why had she attacked? She had intended to run away, but somehow she had unconsciously used an offensive spell against Bellatrix.

“Agh...bad girl, very bad girl…” Bellatrix groaned raising to her feet “It’s time to teach you some manners…”

The witch raised her wand a sent a shower of jinxes at the still confused girl. Without thinking Tonks raised her wand and cried out:

“ _ Protego _ !”

Her shield was weak and it was enough to protect her from most of the damage from the spells, but not enough to prevent her to be hit with recoil from the impact and the tiny girl stumbled with each hit. 

“Tch tch tch… not bad, not bad…” Bellatrix smirked “but not enough good…”

Tonks was panicking. She had no idea what she was supposed to do and most importantly, she had no idea what she was doing, but her body seemed to be acting on its own by running, ducking and dodging spells as she casted her own. 

“Nice try, little mutt...nice...nice…” Bellatrix laughed “but if you want to hurt me...you need to mean it girl...hahahaha…”

Tonks ran. She was  unsure of where she was going, but she knew that her level of magic would never be a match to her aunt. The only reason she was still alive was most likely because Bellatrix was toying with her and not because of her skills at dueling. If she wanted to come out of this unscathed, then her only chance was to find help. She could only hope that she was running in the right direction.

Suddenly, there was a loud  _ Crack  _  and Tonks crashed against something. The girl stared up horrified.Standing in front of her was a man  that looked as though his face was roughly carved from wood; it was covered with scars and as if that wasn’t scary enough, one of his eyes  was small and dark while the other was a vivid, electric blue and moved around independently from his normal eye. That man was wearing dark blue robes and his dark hair was grizzled and messy. The mans dark eye stared at Tonks who had fallen on her back after the impact while his blue seemed to scan the surroundings; his whole appearance would have been enough to scare the bravest soldier, but strangely, Tonks felt a wave of relief fill her body as she looked back at the man and she knew she was saved.

“Behind me, kid…” the man groaned with a growling voice pulling Tonks up and pushing her behind him. The man held his wand and high and began sending spells into the woods. There was a brief exchange of spells, hexes and jinxes until suddenly everything grew quiet. 

“Bah...she ran away…” the man growled annoyed “You okay, lass?”

Tonks blinked. Somehow, his voice sounded awfully familiar.

“I...think so. Is she…?”

“She’s gone. The coward ran away. You were lucky, lass…”

Tonks wanted to snort at the comment. Luck was an understatement. The wave of adrenaline was starting to fade away and her gave up making her fall back to the ground. She could feel the muscles in her legs throbbing with the strain of running relentlessly through  the forest while jumping and ducking. 

“Damn bastards. I see you have a wand, lass. Did you try to duel her?”

Tonks stared at her wand still unsure of what she had actually tried to do. She realized that everything she had done from her meeting with Bellatrix to her current position had happened in some sort of automatic bond. She had felt as if someone had taken control over her body at the time, but she didn’t think that it was something that she should be telling this man at the time.

“...I tried...to defend myself…” she muttered unsure.

The man seemed suspicious of her.

“Defend…?”

“She...was casting hexes at me...so I tried to shield and ...well, I did tried to stun her, but it didn’t work so…”

“Stun her and shielding, huh…” the man muttered rubbing his chin “You can’t be older than 12…”

And then it fell on her. She was underage. She wasn’t supposed to be using magic outside of school. Was she going to get expelled?

“Relax, lass…” the man told her “I know what you’re thinking and no. You’re not going to be expelled, but you’ll have to answer a few questions…”

“I...won’t? I did use magic...I mean…” 

“Yes, but there are exceptions to the rule and I think a crazy dark witch trying to kill you is a perfectly reasonable excuse to use magic…” the man said in some kind of snort “What’s your name, lass?”

“...Tonks...just Tonks…”

“Tonks...ah, you must be Andromeda and Ted’s kid, right?”

“You know my parents?”

“Of course I know your parents, lass. That makes it more than reasonable that you used magic…”

“But won’t the ministry…”

“The ministry will do nothing and if they ask...you used magic on my command, understood?”

“But…” the look in the man’s face instantly silenced her “Yes, sir…”

“Anyway…. I don’t think they teach stunning and shielding spells in Hogwarts so early…” the man said crossing his arms.

Tonks cursed in her head. She had no idea where the spells had come out from, by the time she knew, she was already voicing them. What was she going to say if he asked where she had gotten them?

“Eh….no….I just, read them in a book…” she lied “at the time it was the first thing that came into my mind…”

“Tch...clever but stupid at the same time…” he growled “Well chosen spells. The shielding spell was most likely your best line of defense and the stunning spell is effective, however if you have never casted them before, choosing to use them was the stupidest thing to do…”

Tonks had to admit he was right, but she hadn’t chosen to use them. They had come out on their own.

“Well….I doubt flipping her or tickling her would have helped much…” 

“Fair enough…” the man nodded “Impressive, however. For a young lass like you to use both spells successfully without ever learning them.”

“They didn’t work…” Tonks shrugged.

“Believe me lass, if it hadn’t worked you wouldn’t be standing in front of me. I am Alastor Moody, I am an auror…”

Once more, Tonks wasn’t surprised. It was almost as if she’d already known.

“Why is a kid in the middle of a forest?”

“Why is an auror in the middle of the forest?”

Moody let out another snort.

“I like you, lass. Now...I asked first…”

“I was collecting plants. To help my mum with potions…” Tonks replied “Your turn…”

“I was tending a case in town. Sensed some bad stuff in this direction and followed the trail. Did you see your attacker?”

“I did. It was...my aunt.”

“Which?”

“Ehm...Bellatrix?”

“Tch...I knew it. I’ll get her one of these days….I swear…” Moody said angrily “Come on kid...I’ll take you home, just give me a minute.”

Tonks watched Moody raise his wand and suddenly a silver wild boar erupted from it and vanished into thin air. 

“A patronus…?” Tonks said surprised.   
“So you know about this, too, huh?”

“Eh, yes...a friend told me about them…” Tonks replied. Lupin had told her about patrunuses in one of their many reading afternoons when he told her about dementors when he was tutoring her about DADA.

“Clever. Come on, lass. I need a word with your parents…”  Moody hushed her “You’ll have to lead the way. Ted was always good in shields and concealment spells…”

“That’s what my mum always says…”  Tonks replied guiding the auror through the forest “but how did Bellatrix found me?”

“I don’t think she was looking for you at all, lass. It was more like she stumbled with you by chance. Besides….as good as a spell is, there are always ways to break it...”

“But...does that mean she knows where my parents are?Our home?” Tonks felt the surge of panic and horror raised inside her. 

“Unless you tell me you live under a rock in this forest, lass. I doubt it…”

“Oh, no. We live about a mile from here…”

“Then I doubt she’s found your parents, but she might have an idea of where to look now…” Moody growled “Which is why I need to have a word with them…”

 

Andromeda hadn’t expected to see her daughter walking to the house followed by the infamous Mad-Eye Moody when the girl returned from playing; even less, she didn’t expect the girl to come home covered in scratches, a few burns and her robes looking as if she had been attacked by a wild animal. Tonks was a clumsy, but even her clumsiness wasn’t enough to get her home looking like that.

“Eh...hey mum…” Tonks said hesitantly.

“Nymphadora Tonks...what on Merlin’s name happened to you?” Andromeda said running to look at the girl.

“Ah, calm down. Considering the circumstance, those are pretty much nothing…” Moody growled.

“Alastor… it’s certainly a surprise to see you here. Care to explain why my daughter is in this state? I don’t reckon this is your doing, is it?” Andromeda said in a cold warning voice that made Tonks shudder.

“What do you take me for? No, you can thank your dear sister for that…”

“My sis…?” Andromeda stern look evolved into horror  and she turned back to Tonks.

“You met Bellatrix? Where? Did she hurt you…?”

“I’m alright, mum. These are a few scratches. Nothing that some of your dittany balm won’t heal…” Tonks tried to calm her. 

“Dear Merlin” Andromeda said covering her mouth “ Alastor, please come in. I’m going to call back Ted…”

A few minutes later, Tonks was sitting in the living room with patches of her mother cold Dittany balm pasted all over her scratches as she waited for it to make effect. Moody sat across of her with a cup of tea. His dark eye was staring at her inquisitively while the magical blue one was spinning uncontrollably. 

“Why does it do that?” Tonks asked curiously.

“What?”

“Your eye…? Why does it do that?”

“I’m keeping an eye on the surroundings. You never know what might be hiding in the darkest corner. Co…”

“Constant vigilance…” Tonks had finished automatically earning a- she assumed- surprised look from Moody.

The auror was staring at her with both of his eyes. The look was intimidating, but Tonks felt a little familiarity and comfort from it. 

“Yes, constant vigilance. Where did you hear that?”

“I don’t know. I keeps popping into my head every now and then like a reminder.” Tonks shrugged “Can I ask you a question?”

“You can, but it doesn’t mean I’ll answer, lass…”

“Fair enough” Tonks shrugged  “How is it being an auror?”

“An auror?”

Tonks nodded.

“Humph...well, it’s not a easy job. Takes a lot of work and demands a lot of energy. It’s often dangerous...where do you think I’ve gotten all these, lass?” Moody replied pointing at the numerous scars in his face “We usually end up facing the nastiest slags in the wizarding community…”

“But isn’t it worth it?” Tonks asked tilting her head “I mean...all that sacrifice, energy and sleepless nights...It means you’re helping make the world better, right?”

Moody frowned. He supposed that in a very innocent and childlike way, she was mostly right. 

“Yes, I supposed it is. Why do you ask, lass?”

“I want to be an auror when I graduate…” she shrugged. 

“Aren’t you a little young to know what you want?”

“I’m old enough to know…” she replied annoyed. She usually felt irritated when someone told her she was too young for something. She had decided that she wanted to be an auror since very early in her life after all.

“Listen lass…” Moody said in a serious voice “Being an auror isn’t a game. If you make a mistake people die, YOU die. It isn’t a job to look pretty in…”

“I know. I don’t want to be an auror because of the badge…” Tonks said sincerely and firm “I want to make a difference, sir. I want to help people that are mistreated. Can I do that if  I become an auror?”

“Well...I suppose you can, lass…”

“Then that’s what I want. I don’t care if it takes a lot of training or sleepless nights. If I can do something to help...that is what I want…”

Moody stared at her for a few minutes with both of his eyes and his lips firmly closed in a face that, described as intimidating would have been an understatement. Moody knew that his look could scared off the best senior aurors in the Ministry, and he expected the girl to look down quietly. To his surprised, Tonks didn’t flinch. The girl held his gaze with a look that seemed to challenge him into making her change her mind. No one had ever given him that look and honestly, he’d never expected a 12 years old girl to be the first.

“Alright lass…” he chuckled “We will see. Do your homework in Hogwarts and if in your last year you still want to be an auror, I’ll personally take you as my apprentice. I like you…”

Tonks serious gaze broke into a joyous smile.

“Is it a promise?”

“It is, lass. But to be an auror, you’ll have to work hard on your grades…”

“I will. That’s not a problem…”

Their conversation was interrupted when Andromeda and Ted entered the living room. THe later seemed agitated and the look of concern in his face was clear.

“Dora, dear. Your mother and I need to talk Mr. Moody in private. Why don’t you go clean up yourself before dinner?”

Tonks felt curiosity about the conversation, but looking at her father’s serious face - which was highly unusual- she decided that the wisest decision was to obey. Tonks stood from her seat and walked to the stairs leaving the three adults alone.

Andromeda waved her wand and the door that separated the living room from the rest of the house closed with a soft click.

“ _ Muffliato”  _ Andromeda whispered before taking seat  by her husband side. 

“Alastor, thank you very much for saving Dora today…” Ted said from his place in front of the auror “I don’t want to imagine what could have happened if you hadn’t shown up…”

“The girl was holding herself pretty well without my help…” Moody replied “I found her alive and pretty much unscathed, after all.  Did you teach your daughter stunning and protective spells by any chance?”

“What…? Of course not…” Andromeda said alarmed.

“Just asking. That’s not important now…” Moody said waving his hand “I suppose you heard about what happened in town?”

Ted sighed. They had found another family dead. The parents and a girls of nine years old were killed in their homes. To the muggles it was a  case of of a break in, but the magical community it was far more serious. The girl had been a half- blood; the father was a muggle born that worked in the  Muggle Liaison Office and his wife was a pureblood witch that worked in St. Mungo.

“Don’t tell me you didn’t get the hidden message in that murder…”

“...of course we do. It was Bellatrix doing, wasn’t it?”

“No doubt she had a hand at it. She meeting up with your daughter was pure coincidence, but the location she chose to attack, no. She already suspected you were hiding in this area…”

“And now that she saw Dora out there...she won’t doubt searching in here…” Ted said bitterly “I couldn’t care less if she wants to take it on me, but Dora and Dromeda....?”

“ Bellatrix would never kill me…” Andromeda said solemnly “She hates me too much to give me the pleasure of dying. She’s targeting you and Nymphadora because she wants to punish me and today she had a chance to do it…” 

Andromeda let out a soft sob and Ted rubbed her back comfortingly. 

“Not use to cry over it. We need to focus in the future. There’s no doubt she’ll come again and we can’t trust your shielding spells to keep you safe forever. Dumbledore’s offer is a good choice…” Moody growled  “The order can help.…”

“Dromeda told me about Dumbledore’s offer…” Ted said “I am grateful for it, but I have to ask...why us? We aren’t the only family in threatened by this new dark wizard regime…”

“Call him Voldemort…” Moody said impatiently “Dumbledore did not explain, however he suspects that your family is one of  the ones he might have a particular interest in; especially in your daughter. We know little about his plans…”

“Nymphadora?” Andromeda says “Why…?”

“ You’ll have to ask Dumbledore that, lassie; but I would think a metamorphmagus is probably a rare trophy...” Moody said with no nonsense tone “I wouldn’t doubt that your dear sister would be more than willing to offer her to her lord…”

Andromeda tensed and Ted squeezed her hand trying to ease her.

“Dromeda and I have been discussing it for the past few days..…We want to help.” Ted said taking his wife’s hand “We  don’t have much to offer, but we are willing to join the Order and do whatever we can. ” 

“With the Ministry playing the ignorant card about Voldemort and his little sect’s activities, any help is a lot…” Moody said shaking his head “and we will make sure everyone in your family is kept safe…”

Ted nodded.

“I suppose I should talk to Dumbledore.”

“He’s in Hogwarts…” Moody said “You go. I can stay here and watch over your family until you come back…”

 

***

 

_ The red light of a stunning  spell missed her by a few inches as Tonks leaned behind one of the broken tombstones. What had began as a routinary patrol had suddenly ended as a violent confrontation between aurors and a group of “trouble makers”. _

_ “Troublemakers my arse…” Tonks grunted in annoyance “The Ministry really has to be blind if they can’t tell troublemakers from death eaters…” _

_ A loud bang echoed by her side and she had throw herself away from her hideout as the stone collapsed.  _

_ “Hahaha... come out...come out… won’t you come greet your aunt Bella?” _

_ Bellatrix was caressing the tip of her wand as she bit her lips in delight and looked around in evident amusement.  _

_ “Dear old Andromeda….what a disappointment. Not only did she marry a mudblood, but she had no decency of teaching her child proper manners...tchtch….It’d be up to me to teach your how to behave…” _

_ “I pass…! I’ve got better things to do...”  _

_ Tonks jumped out of her hideout and sent a wave of yellow lighting at the woman who responded with her own shower of blue lightning. The spells crashed and sent both casters flying back in recoil. Tonks back hit one of the broken tombs painfully. One of the broken tips of stone had pierced through her shoulder and the blood was starting to stain her Weird Sisters’ shirt. _

_ “Ah...you’re too weak, Nymphadora…” Bellatrix laughed walking to her “What an embarrassment you are…. Disgusting …” _

_ “Thank you...your disgusts flatters me  _ aunty _ Bella…” Tonks replied pushing herself into an offensive position, but the pain of her shoulder made her flinch. _

_ “It’s time to have some fun, dear niece of mine…” Bellatrix smiled maniacally “Oh yes, yes....We will enjoy our time and you will never forget our time together… _ Crucio! _ ” _

_ The wave of pain made Tonks cried out; it was like feeling her muscles being torn and burned at the same time. Every inch of tissue and bone pierced by thousands of hot snives. _

_ She screamed ...and screamed...and screamed… _

 

“Nymphadora! Nymphadora wake up!” 

Tonks’s eyes snapped open. The girl was covered in sweat and her throat was hoarse and throbbing as if she had screamed the life out of her. She could still feel the pain in her body, every inch of her hurt and she felt nauseous. It took her a few minutes to understand where she was. It’d been a dream, but it had felt so real. 

Andromeda was staring at her daughter with glassy eyes. The woman had been sitting in the living room with Moody when she had heard her daughter’s screams. Screams like she’d never heard before from her sweet child; screams filled of pain and agony. Horrified, the woman had rushed her way to her child like a hurricane with Moody following close behind. Both wizards pushed the door of the room open with wands raised high but what they found took the breath out of Andromeda.

Tonks was twisting and contorting on her bed as she screamed; the way her hands and legs twisted were a clear sign that the girl was suffering an indescribable amount of pain and Andromeda desperately tried to wake up her girl.

“M-mum?”

Andromeda pulled her daughter into a hug as the tears ran down her cheeks. Tonks flinched slightly. Her mother’s contact was warm, familiar and loving, but her body complained  with the slightest touch.

“It’s alright, it was a nightmare...nothing else, honey…”

Tonks didn’t say anything. She remained in her mother’s arms trembling as the pain became stronger and stronger. Her head felt like it was being nailed on every possible place with hot nails. She wanted to tell her mother she was feeling ill, but the girl could make no sound,  and before anything else could happen, her world turned to darkness. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like the idea of Moody meeting younger Tonks and having like this instant link. Even if Tonks and everyone else can't really recall the things that happened in the other timeline, emotional bonds still remain. The idea of this is a thought that is popular in asian religions (I am asian) in which a person who's fate is linked to another, will eventually find each other no matter in which life. It goes a little with the idea of the Three lives, Three worlds.   
> Also, Tonks carries some memories from her other self, which are mostly her auror skills and of course her dear acceptance of werewolves..some things simple doesn't change no matter how many lives.


	19. Letters left without answer

"There are wounds that never show on the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds."    
— Laurell K. Hamilton

 

Andromeda and Ted were desperate. With each day that passed, their daughters’ condition seemed to worsen. Tonks could barely stay awake for more than a couple hours and most of them were spent with her daughter throwing up anything that she tried to swallow; and her asleep time was filled up with nightmares that none of the them could comprehend. The full moon would soon be over and Andromeda hoped with all her heart that the symptoms would improve once it had waned; but the full moon was gone and the days passed, but their daughter showed no signs of improvement.

“She keeps whispering Bella’s name in her sleep…” Andromeda said wiping the sweat from her daughter’s forehead “Do you think...she might have done something?”

“Alastor said that Bellatrix didn’t get the chance to harm her…” Ted said rubbing his wives back “She was probably scared and she’s being affected by it, Dromeda…”

“I think I’ll make some dreamless draught. I just can’t see her like this…”

Ted was about to tell his wife something when a loud knock in the window interrupted them. The man opened the window and a chocolate colored owl flew into the room dropping a heavy piece of parchment.

“It’s the ninth one in four days…” Ted said picking the letter and looking at the sender “ The third from Remus…”

“Her friends must be wondering why she hasn’t replied…” Andromeda guessed “Do you think we should…?”

But Ted didn’t get to know what ANdromeda was about to suggest since a silver wild boar materialized in front of them. They recognized the Patronus as Mad-Eye’s; the man had been stationed in the local town since the attack and murder of the O'Malley family. 

_ Found your baby cousin snooping around with some of his friends. Says he’s friends of the lass and demands to see her. Come pick him up, will you? _

 

Mad-Eye’s voice sounded slightly irritated. Of course Sirius would be the kind of person to come in personally to  see why his little cousin hadn’t replied any of his recent letters and of course he wouldn’t have been able to find the house since it had been concealed under a fidelius charm. 

“Oh, dear…” Ted said “ I suppose you should go. You’re the secret keeper after all…”

After a lot of deliberation, both Ted and Andromeda had agreed that the best course of action was making Andromeda the secret keeper instead of Ted, as Dumbledore had suggested. Ted would have been to obvious and while Bellatrix or any of her nasty friends would have no reservations over torturing him and using any possible mean to reveal their location, they would keep a little more civilized treatment to  her wife as she was, one way or another, a daughter of Black. 

“Oh, I totatlly forgot about Sirius…” Andromeda said. She picked up a piece of paper and scribbled a quick note. “Here...this should do. Go fetch him before Alastor runs out of patience…”

Ted took the paper and headed out to town. He found Sirius accompanied by another three boys that he didn’t recognize and girl sitting in a bench in the park while Mad- Eye was throwing them some sort of scold. By the paleness and the look of their faces, it was clear that the children were pretty much scared of the man and Ted chuckled. Who wasn’t scared of Mad-Eye? Besides his daughter, apparently from what Mad-Eye had said about the girl’s guts.

“And there you are Ted...I was starting to think you wouldn’t be coming back for these noisy bunch…” Mad-Eye growled without turning to him and he guessed that he had seen him coming with his magical eye. 

“Sorry, Alastor. I was helping Dromeda with Dora.”

“Is the kid any better?”

“Slightly...but not enough to say it is an improvement, though…” Ted answered sadly “Hello, Sirius…”

“Finally!” Sirius said crossing his arms impatiently “I tried to get to your house but I couldn’t find it, then this old geezer dragged us all the way here…”

“Watch your mouth, lass…” Moody said annoyed.

“Oh, I am sorry Sirius...we had to...do some arrangements to the house. I’ll tell you later. Are you all Dora’s friends?”

“Yes, we are...I’m James Potter!”

“I’m Peter, Peter Pettigrew.”

“I am Lily Evans and this is my friend Severus Snape…”

“They are all Tonksie’s friends…” Sirius nodded “Remus wanted to come, but he’s still in Scotland. Tonksie wasn’t answering our letters so we figured we should come and find out why…”

“I see. I am Ted Tonks. I am Dora’s father…” Ted smiled at the children “Alright Alastor, I’ll handle them from here…”

“Send my greetings to Andromeda. I’m going back to my patrol…”

Ted waved him goodbye. When Moody was out of sight, he turned to the children an invited them to follow him.

“He’s scary, don’t you think?” Peter said with a shudder.

“He is...but I think he’s kind of cool as well…” James said enthusiastically.

“You were trembling the whole time, Potter…”

“Oi, Snivellus, I wasn’t!”

Ignoring the bickering boys, Lily and Sirius approached Ted.

“Mr. Moody said Tonks is sick…” Lily said concerned “Is it grave?”

“She’s been sick for a while yes…” Ted said rubbing the back of his head “ We should have written back to you  for her, but we were a little distracted. I am sorry…”

“Don’t mind about that…” Sirius said waving his hand “I’ll write to Remus as soon as I get the chance. He was starting to freak out a little, well...not a little, maybe a lot is more accurate…”   
“Oh, we received a letter from him  before you arrived…” Ted said “ Is he really that worried?”

“Call it friends bond of I don’t know what it might be, but he told me he had a feeling that she’d have a rough full moon relapse…” Sirius shrugged “ Guess he was right then?”

“He did?”

That was something interesting. He would contact Lyall when he had the chance. His wife would want to give them their location after all. Could it be that little Remus affliction with the Full Moon could somehow relate to his Dora’s?

“Lupin spent a lot of time with her when she was sick during the school year…” Lily reasoned “My mum says that it sorts of creates a connection…”

“Either is that...or is just he being a paranoid because he fancies her…” Sirius smirked and Lily punched his arm with a glare “Oh...I wasn’t supposed to said that in front of you, Ted….sorry. Can you forget that?”

Ted laughed; something he hadn’t done in the past days since he was over concerned with her daughter.  So Remus was chasing after his daughter; Andromeda had said that his Dora was probably smitten with the boy and she wouldn’t be surprised if the girl decided to chase the boy when she was a little older and more aware of what that meant.  Regardless of how much he liked the boy, he was still a father, and all fathers are always jealous of their daughters and he had began a tantrum over why his Dora was still too young to be thinking of dating and boys. His wife had laughed saying that she would had expected him to show some reserves about the possibility of her daughter dating a werewolf that about her age and he realized that the thought hadn’t even crossed his mind at the thought. That night both had discussed the possibility and both had agreed that werewolf or not, he was a good boy and if Dora wanted him and he could make her happy, they’d accept it if it ever happened.

With Sirius little slip, Ted realized that the possibility was closer to reality than he or Andromeda could have ever thought.

“Oh, it’s alright Sirius…” he answered “Remus is a good boy. Honestly, with my Dora’s temper...I’m surprised he would be interested in her…”

“Oh, why do you say that sir?” Lily asked.

“Oh, my Dora is the sweetest girl in the world, but even I know she’s not exactly the model of femininity. I’d have imagined boys like Remus to like more...how to say, doll like girls?”

“Bah...of course not…” Sirius said waving his hand “I think that might be James. He loves the sweet good girl types. Remus...I don’t think he even has a type. He just likes Tonksie and that’s it…”

“Oh…” Ted laughed “I see ...I see…”

“You’re not...bothered by it, sir?” Lily asked.

“Me? Oh a part of me, the overprotective and jealous father part , is...believe me; but my reasonable part is rather...mmm...satisfied?”

“Satisfied?” both Lily and Sirius said cluelessly.

“This is a secret…” Ted smiled “ But my wife and I firmly believe that  our Dora relishes him, so knowing that there’s a high chance that she won’t get her heart crushed by an unrequited love shuld make me at ease, don’t you think?”   
“HAH I KNEW IT!” Lily said triumphantly “It’s a girl’s sixth sense, see what I told you Black?”

Ted laughed. He was reminded of his school days when he was chasing after Andromeda and watching her from the corner of his eyes whenever she walked down the corridors of Hogwarts. As pleasant as the conversation was, there was something that he had to do before they could get to the house. 

“Right. Before I can take you to the house…” He said calling at all the group. Ted looked around, making sure that no one was around and added in a lower voice “for security reason, our houses has been put under a protection spell. Now...I’ll give you this paper and each of you will have to memorise what it says…”

“A fidelius charm?” Snape asked.

“You are Snape right? Yes, Dora did say you were quite clever. Yes, it is a fidelius charm...now. If you’re so kind…”

Ted passed them the small piece of paper that Andromeda had scribbled and gave each of the children a couple minutes to memorise it before retrieving it.

“Ready?” he asked to make sure. 

The children nodded and Ted led them into their property. All of the visitors, except Sirius, were surprised by the beautiful garden and Ted felt a small pinch of pride of his wife’s and -more recently- daughter’s hand in plant care. 

“My wife is a healer potioneer…” Ted explained “we have quite a stock of fresh herbs at hand as you can see…”

“It’s amazing…” Lily said “Did you see Severus?”

“Yes, these are really well kept!” Snape beamed and for the first time in forever, his companion swore they had never seen his eyes glow brighter.

Ted led them inside the house where Andromeda received them solemnly. The visitors greeted the woman politely and she gave them a welcoming smile.

“It’s good to see you all again. I am afraid that Nymphadora is in no condition to receive you. She woke up a while ago, but I had to give her a dreamless draught to ensure she rests a little…”

“Is she alright?” 

“Fever has lowered, but it is still a little high. She didn’t throw up this time, so I see that as a good sign…” Andromeda smiled sadly “Poppy told me it could get difficult, but I didn’t foresee anything like this…”

“Oh, buggers…” Sirius said brushing back his black hair “Remus nailed it after all…” 

“Remus?”

“Remus was worried…” James explained “He thought that Tonks might have had a relapse or something…”

“He...did?”

“It seems that our daughter’s little friends has a very sharp sense of Dora’s well being…” Ted smiled at his wife meaningfully. It took Andromeda a couple minutes to decipher the implications in her husband’s words and she chuckled.

“Can’t we see her? Last time Professor Dumbledore said that company did her well.” Lily asked.

“Well, I wouldn’t mind, but…” Andromeda said “she’s sleeping…”

“That’s alright. She was always sleeping back then anyway…” Snape shrugged. 

“Oh well…” Andromeda sighed “I reckon there’s no harm on it. Sirius knows her room. Go ahead, I’ll bring you some refreshments in a while…”

“Awesome! Oh...can I borrow and owl? I should write to Remus…” Sirius asked.

“You can use Millie. She’s in Dora’s room…” Ted replied. 

THey all thanked Andromeda politely before rushing away behind Sirius. The watched them disappear up the stairs and sighed. Her husband surrounded her shoulders with his arms and chuckled.

“It seems our daughter made some good friends at Hogwarts…” she smiled “I am glad, I was afraid she would have troubles with my family influence an all…”

“Oh yes...very good friends. I you have no idea what they told me…”

“You had a 15 minutes walk with a group of children and you were already gossiping with them, Ted? Shame on you…” Andromeda chuckled. 

“No...it was your cousin letting it slip…”

“And what exactly was that?”

“Something regarding a certain boy that Dora might be fancying…”

“You mean...Remus?”

Ted smiled knowingly.

“Edward Tonks...we need to talk…”

 

***

Lupin was walking restlessly around his room. His parents had rented a small cottage in the middle of the Highlands. It was located in a beautiful place and Lupin couldn’t stop himself from thinking that Tonks would have loved it, but she hadn’t answered any of his letters since the last full moon and that had given him a bad feeling. That had been why he had written to Sirius to ask him if he was had talked to his cousin, when Sirius noted that she hadn’t replied any of his letter’s either, Lupin alert bulb lit up. It didn’t help when he learned that there had been attack on a Wizard Town close to where Tonks lived and that the victims had most likely been murdered by pureblood fanatists; there was no mention of Tonks in the article, but there was a strange feeling that made him anxious. The night of the full moon, as he laid down in a secured room in the shape of a wolf, he had a unsettling dream in which he saw Tonks running through the forests chased by black hooded figures. It had been a dream, most likely an subconscious way of expressing his anxiety; but  when days passed and his owl were still unanswered, he wrote Sirius another letter urging him to go check on Tonks.

“Remus…?”

The boy stopped his pacing and turned to his mother who had just entered the room with his cloak neatly folded in her hands. Hope stared at her son with a frown and walked to him to brush hi hair.

“What’s wrong?” she asked him softly.

“Nothing…” he quickly replied.

Hope left the folded cloak over the table and pulled her son to sit on the bed with her. The boy had grown another few inches in the last month and he already passed above her head.

“Remus John Lupin…” she said in stern but soothing voice “I am your mother and I can tell when something is bothering you, so talk… You have the bad habit of bottling it all up.”

Lupin sighed. His mother might have been a muggle, but her motherly sixth sense could rival any empath. 

“I’m worried…” he said simply and he could have sworn his mother had rolled her eyes.

“That I noticed. Why are you worried, Remus?”

Lupin tapped his fingers on his knee unsure of what to say next.

“Is it about Nymphadora?” 

“...Call her Tonks. She hates it when people call her by her name…” he said trying to sound casual.

“Alright, is it about Tonks? No use on denying young man. Your face is already betraying you…” Hope said trying not to smile at the flush in her son’s face “is everything alright with her?”

“Yes, it’s brilliant. She’s the best, wonderful…”

“Then why are you worried…?”

Lupin reflected on his answer and Hope waited patiently. Her son had confessed a few days ago - against his will of course - that he was hopelessly smitten by the young girl. The shyness and the embarrassment in that confession had made her smile. Her boy was growing up.

“...she hasn’t written back…” Lupin said in “I thought... I was stupid at first, thought maybe she wasn’t writing to me on purpose; but Tonks isn’t like that...she’s too nice and sweet; so I asked Sirius, and he said she hasn’t written back to him either…”

“Well, it is summer. Perhaps she’s just distracted…”

“Yes...maybe...but mum, have you ever had this strange nagging sensation in your chest that makes you feel awfully anxious?”

“Like...if something bad was about to happen?”

Hope had. In fact, she had the night her baby boy had been bitten and if it hadn’t been for that nagging urge to check on her son, the boy might have not survived.

“Yes, exactly…”

“I...have. Are you having a bad feeling about her? Why?”

Lupin considered his answer. The boy hadn’t told his parents that Tonks would join his wolf form on Full moons for the past two years. He wasn’t sure how if he should at all.

“She hasn’t been well. It’s a strange thing...she’s fallen ill a few times around the full moon and it’s been really bad. I’m worried that she…”

“That she’d fallen sick again…” Hope nodded “Well, son...this is why I can’t understand why you, wizards, can’t have a stupid phone. It’d be as easy as to call Andromeda or Ted to ask…

“I asked Sirius to go see her…” Lupin said shyly “He...he was planning on visiting her anyway so…”

“Oh, and did he see her?”

“I...don’t know. He hasn’t told me anything yet…” Lupin shrugged “I just...I don’t know why am I so restless anyway. I keep thinking the worst and...maybe it is nothing at all…”

Hope chuckled. She picked the boys hands and stroke them gently. Remus was always a quiet boy; so quiet that Hope sometimes worried. He was a good boy, well mannered and considerate; he would rather keep quiet than bother others with his own problems.

“That, sweetheart, is because you care about her. When you care about someone you worry. You worry about the smallest things. You said it yourself, Tonks is a sweet girl...and I’m sure that if she isn’t writing to you it is for a reason…”

“Yes...I suppose…”

“And...for what I know…” Hope said fixing her son’s shirt “that girl is as attached to you as you are to her…”

“Mum, what are you saying? There’s no way you’ll know…”

“You forget I am friends with her mother, son.” Hope chuckled “And Andromeda was very emphatic on how her daughter has to mention you on every letter…”

“We...get along. We are really good friends. Mum, she’s such a wonderful girl there’s no way she would be interested in...well, me.”   
“And why would that be? You’re such fine young man…” Hope laughed.

“Mum...you’re forgetting one important thing…” Lupin said impatiently “I have one big issue…”

“Honey. That doesn’t make you any less of a man…”

“But it does, mum. Most people will have a change of heart as soon as they know the truth about  _ what  _  I am…”

Hope stared at her son sadly. He was probably right, she knew that since her husband had once being prejudiced about werewolf at some point of his life. It was that prejudice that had gotten his son in such a terrible predicament after all; but like muggles, she knew that not all wizards would think like that. Andromeda and Ted for example, they had showed their sadness and perhaps a little bit of fear when they had learned the truth; but they hadn’t tried to stop her daughter from befriending him, had they? Andromeda still popped around her house for tea and both families were in very good terms. Her daughter, as well, wasn’t she so accepting about werewolves that it had left an impression on their son the very first year he met her?

“But not all, sweetheart. Most will, but not all and something tells me she’s one of those.”

“...She doesn’t know. She might change her mind when she learns I am monster mum…”

“Oh, honey. You don’t know that and you’ll have to tell her...eventually…”

“I know…”

“Tell who what?” Lyall said from the door.

“Dad! When did you come back?”

“I just did...I heard you talking. What’s going on?”   
“Oh nothing, Lyall. We were talking about Remus’s girlfriend…” Hope smiled.

“What? Girlfriend? Who? When?”

“Mum! She’s not my girlfriend!”

“My bad, I meant...almost girlfriend…”

“Mum…”

“Oh, you mean the Tonks’s girl…”

“Dad!”

Lupin rolled his eyes when both of his parents laughed. He was starting to regret telling them he liked the girl. When his mother had cornered him, he should have just denied it.

“I’m sorry, Remus…” Lyall chuckled “But what about her?”

“Your son is having a tantrum about why she wouldn’t ever consider him as a prospect…”

“Oh...yes, that tends to happen. I am afraid it is a bad Lupin’s trait…” Lyall chuckled “You have no idea of how long I struggled about telling your mother I was a wizard...I sort of thank that stupid boggart for taking the choice from me.”

“Dad...telling mum you were a wizard doesn’t compares to my situation…” Lupin sighed.

Before any of his parents could come up with something to contradict their son’s thoughts, a golden owl flew into the room and perched on the bed stand.

“Oh, isn’t that your girlfriend’s owl?” Lyall smiled.

“She’s not my girlfriend…” Lupin said rolling his eyes “Hey Millie...is good to see you. I have some toffee but I’m not sure if owls can eat toffee…”

Millie flapped her wings in disgust and Lupin took that as a no.

“Well, how about you rest for a bit and I can get you something later…” he added taking the note from the birds leg.

“Well, what does she say?” Hope asked as the boy unrolled the parchment.

Lupin’s face darkened as he saw the Sirius’s messy handwriting instead of Tonks curved one. 

  
  


_ Moony, _

 

_ You should consider a career as a seer. I’m currently in Andromeda’s home. I came with everyone to check on Tonksie ( yes, everyone.  I even dragged Snivellus out of his manhole). It took us a while to find the house and we met up with some creepy old geezer. It seems they had to use some protective spell on the house: a fidelius charm. Snivellus says is a serious thing, but I don’t know. You probably know better.  _

_ Your suspicion was right, she’s been ill since the last Full Moon. Andromeda says she’s barely been awake for more than a few minutes in the last two weeks.  I’m watching her sleep as I write this note and mate, she’s beaten up. Never seen her as pale as now.  _

_ We’ll stay around until the end of summer. Hopefully she’ll be getting better with some company and we can help Andromeda and Ted taking care of her.  Lily and Snivellus seem to be eager to help, but don’t tell him I know.  _

_ I know you won’t be able to make it here, but don’t worry. As soon as she wakes up, I’ll tell her you were worried sick about her.  _

_ Take care Moony, I’ll let you know of any new. _

 

_ Padfoot _

  
  


“Remus?” Hope said resting her hand on her shoulder.

“The note is from Sirius….” he replied “Tonks is sick; Andromeda told him that she’s been mostly unconscious for the past two weeks.”

“That’s….terrible news…” Hope said horrified “Lyall, is there any way I could contact Andromeda?” 

“We can use the Floo…” Lyall said “I’ll get the powder…”

Hope walked out of the room giving her son a comforting squeeze in his shoulder.  Lupin watched his parents walk out and stared at the letter with worry. He almost wished that the reason he hadn’t gotten any letters back was because Tonks was ignoring him.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	20. A little too tiring

"After every storm, there is a rainbow. If you have eyes, you will find it. If you have wisdom, you will create it. If you have love for yourself and others, you won’t need it." 

—  **Shannon L. Alder**

 

It wasn’t until  after the second Full Moon that Tonks was strong enough to be up and going. The first thing she did was writing to Lupin a three parchment letter in which 80% of the first one had been apologies for not replying his letters on time. Lupin had felt relieved to learn that the girl was feeling better at last.  Sirius had honored his word and wrote him regular updates of the girl’s status for the rest of the summer. The day Sirius letter had come along with an extra letter in Tonks own handwriting, Lupin felt a weight lift from his shoulders. 

On September 1st arrived, the Lupins stepped into the platform 9 ¾  barely missing a group first second years that passed them running like an stampede. The station was full of students and their families; some students were busy looking for their friends in the crowd and others were dramatically saying their goodbyes to their family. 

Remus and his parents had barely made it to the train when he heard a loud screech followed by a bang and then a shower of nervous apologies. A sound that had become fairly familiar in the past two years and that Remus had certainly missed in the past three months. Before he had even had the time say anything, Tonks smart frame had jumped over him pulling him into a tight hug and he had automatically obliged hoping his face wasn’t as flushed as he felt. Somewhere behind him he caught something that sounded like her parents scoffing.

“REEEEMUSSSS…..”Tonks cried.

“Eh...hi?” he said not quite sure of what to say, but noticing her familiar scent of lilacs and the hidden locks of buble gum pink hair hidden under her hood. He also noticed how light she was. 

“Merlin’s beards...I missed you. Did you grow taller in three months? I can swear you are taller...stop growing already!” she said still not letting go. 

Remus chuckled. From all the things he’d expected Tonks to say to him when they met in the station, that was definitely not one in the list.

“Sorry. Growing isn’t something I have control over, you know?”

“Oh, well that’s fine.” she said letting go of him and sliding back to the ground  where she had to raised her her to look at him and giggled “Huh, yup...definitely taller. You know, I’ll get neck aches for talking with you this year, so don’t mind me if I don’t stare at your face for too long.”

Remus shook his head and snorted. He could finally get a good look at her and painfully noticed that she was indeed a lot thinner than he remembered. Her face was bright and her smile as lovely as it had  always been, he was sure that she was probably morphing her eye bags, but her eyes felt a little too tired. Tonks stretched her arm and traced one of his newer scars across his cheek.

“Rough summer, too?” she asked with a smile “That makes two of us. What were you doing? Parkouring cliffs in the Highlands…”

“Perhaps I was…” he chuckled “I was looking for your souvenir…”

“Ah mind you. Are you trying to make me feel guilty?” 

“No, no at all. How are you feeling?”

“Me? I’m peachy…” she smiled she stepped back and did a happy spin to make her point  and crashed with a pair of fifth years that had been trying to put up their trucks “Ooops, sorry…”

“Dora, what did I tell you about spinning so randomly on crowded spaces?” Ted laughed walking to them with Andromeda. 

“That it makes you dizzy?”

“Besides that…” Ted snorted.

“That I should always remember to be graceful and lady like…”

“Nope, that’s what your mother says. I usually say...watch where you spin. Lyall, Hope hello. Remus...we missed you this summer…” 

“Hello Mr. and Ms. Tonks…”Remus smiled “I missed you all too…”

“It was my fault that he missed a summer with his friends…” Lyall said resting his hand over his son’s shoulder “but I wanted to show him a little about my research…”

“Oh, no need to worry. It’s good that you two share time together…” Andromeda smiled “They have the next 11 months to make up for their missed summer.”

“Oh, hopefully they’ll make a good use of them…”

“Just don’t traumatise him too much, Nymphadora…” 

Tonks rolled her eyes.

“You make it sound as if torture him. You can ask him, I’ve never been mean to him.”

“Of course, you wouldn’t…” Andromeda chuckled looking at her daughter with knowing look.

“Oh, Merlin...mum!” Tonks pouted.

“Haha, it’s alright Dora. Remus, can I trust you to take care of her for me?” Ted asked patting the boys back. 

“Of course I will…Always…”Remus smiled.

“Dad...How come you come and drop the bomb of looking after me over poor Remus? He has a lot of responsibilities over him already?”

“Do I?” Lupin chuckled.

“Someone has to be the one with common sense and prevent Sirius, James and Peter from blowing up the wholes school or getting themselves kicked out from it. That’s a lot of responsibility…”

The Lupins and the Tonks laughed loudly.

“And you just proved my point of why I should trust  _ you  _  to him and not to your cousin, Dora…” Ted said quirking an eyebrow.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Tonks. I’ll take care of her. I’ll keep her away from the ground, make sure she doesn’t get into troubles and keep an eye over her general well being…”

“Remus...don’t encourage him…”

“Being fair, Nymphadora, that is the only way we’ll be at ease…” Andromeda said.

“I can take care of myself…” Tonks pouted “No need to bother Remus with the extra weight…”

“How sweetheart. I am sure it’ll be good practice for him anyway…” Hope smiled.

“Good practice?” Both Lupin and Tonks said in unison.

“For when he gets married and has to take care of his own family of course….” Hope grinned.

“Mum…” Remus mumbled and half glared at his parents.

“Oh...I hadn’t thought of it like that…” Tonks said cluelessly “That makes sense…”

“Tonks...that’s a joke…” Lupin said miserably.

“Eh? Why? Your mum is right…”

“Oh, you’re adorable Ms. Tonks…” Lyall chuckled “Now I see why my son is son fond of you.”

“Is he? I could swear I drive him insane sometimes…” Tonks smirked “Oh, no wait...that’s Severus. Yeah I think Remus does like me…”

“Oh, dear...you have no idea. Do you know he...”

“Alright….it’s almost time. We should find a compartment, the train is about to leave. I’ll write to you. Love you mum, dad…” Lupin said in a rush before his parents kept sabotaging him.

“Oh, okay. It was great to see you Mr. and Mrs. Lupin. Good bye. Mum, dad… love you. I’ll write to you everyday. Take care…”

“You too, honey…” Andromeda smiled.

The two pair of parents watched as their children boarded the train and waved at them with a smile. Almost immediately, the train’s alarm ran letting everyone know that the Hogwarts Express was ready to depart. Both  Tonks and Remus waved at their parents as the train began to move and soon the train was leaving the station at full speed.

“I reckon Sirius and the others saved us a compartment?” Remus asked her with frown.

“Ehm...probably…” Tonks shrugged “We have a lot to talk about, Remus…”

“Do we?” 

“Yes, for starters...you have to tell me everything about your trip to the Highlands. I’ve always wanted to visit it!” 

“How about you come with us next time?” 

“Would you take me?”

“I wouldn’t mind.”

“Then that’s a promise, Remus John Lupin…”

“Wow, full names now?”

“Yes, because yours is so nice and pretty unlike mine…”

“But I like yours…” Lupin chuckled “In fact, can’t I get Snape’s privilege of calling you by it?”

“Ugh...I’m still trying to stop him from using it!” Tonks rolled her eyes “But if you are so into using my name then I think we can compromise…”

“So I can use Nymphadora…”

“Ew, no...but you can call me Dora.”

Lupin chuckled. He still loved her full name, but Dora was cute, too and he felt a little pride in the fact that, besides her dad, he hadn’t heard anyone use Dora to address her.

“Well, I like it, Dora…” 

“Mmm...yeah, I can deal with that…” she nodded “Congratulations, Mr. Lupin… you have earned the privilege of using my shortened name.”

“Great…” he smiled.

“Moony!” James said peeping out of the compartment “I knew Tonksie would fish you...I told you, Pads, those two will always run with each other…”

“Actually, she ran  _ to  _ me and If you had ran a little faster you might have knocked the air out of me and thrown me to ground…” Lupin laughed. 

“Ah...she did, didn’t she?” Sirius said with interest.

“I don’t see what’s so surprising about it…” Snape said resting his chin on his hand and raising an eyebrow at them “Nymphadora practically runs and knocks anything in her way bringing a wave chaos and destruction…”

“Oh geez, Severus...you make it sound like if I was an Erumpent or something…”

“Oh,you are not? Could have fooled me…”

“Well, erumpents are cute, mind you.” Tonks said sticking her tongue at him.

Everyone in the compartment laughed as both Remus and Tonks found their seats. 

“So…Moony, we missed you this summer. We had lots of fun at Tonksie’s…” Sirius said putting his arm around hi friends.

“Yeah, we went  _ bicing _ around town and everything!” James said enthusiastically.

“It’s biking, Potter. Biking…” Lily corrected rolling her eyes.

“That...you know muggles have this things...kinda like brooms, but they can’t fly. THey have two wheels and you have to pedal  to make it move. It was weirdest thing ever, but Merlin...it was sooo fun…”

“Ted got them for us and he let us ride around town…” Sirius explained “Haha...we spent two days trying to figure them out. Snivellus and Evans had to teach us how to use them...do you imagine?”

“Oh, yes...that was really fun to see…” Tonks chuckled.

“You didn’t go with them?” Lupin asked her.

“Would have loved to,  but I was still recovering and mum and dad were a little paranoid after the attack…” Tonks shrugged “ was in home arrest…”

“Attack?” Lupin said in wide eyes “What attack?”

“You said you’d tell us when we had Moony back, so time to spill out the story, Tonksie…” Sirius said crossing his arms with a demanding expression.

The rest of the presents fell into silence. Lupin wasn’t quite sure of what was going on, but he noticed that even Snape and Lily seemed to be paying attention. 

“I must admit I am intrigued, too…” Snape agreed “What happened that had your parents use a Fidelius Charm on your house?”

Lupin tilted his head. He remembered Sirius mention the Fidelius Charm in a couple of his letters. He didn’t know much of it, since it was very advanced magic, but after asking his father he had figured that it was a special charm used to conceal some sort of “secret”. It was used in desperate cases in which hiding something or someone was crucial. 

Tonks fidgeted with the end of her sleeve; not like she was nervous, but rather like she was trying to find the right words.

“It’s not a big deal, if you think about it. I just had a bad family reunion…” Tonks began “I stumbled with...my aunt Bellatrix. Let’s say she wasn’t too thrilled to see me. I was lucky enough that an auror helped me…”

“The geezer with the weird eye?” James asked and Lupin saw Peter shudder behind him.

“Yes, his name is Alastor Moody…” Tonks explained “He sort of saved me and took me home. HE talked to my parents, but they wouldn’t let me hear at the time. Dad told me my aunt Bellatrix was working with some dangerous wizard and that she had set, as her personal goal, eradicating my family and punishing my mum for betraying the Black honorable pureblood legacy…”

Sirius made a disgusted face at the mention of the Black’s blood tradition. 

“We’ve been trying to avoid confrontation since I was born; that why my dad kept some concealment charms around our home, but it seems that Bellatrix somehow managed to cross that barrier and accidentally stumbled with while I was doing some collecting in the forest. With the risk of my aunt coming to our home, my parents decided to do the Fidelius to...ensure our safety, and that’s it…”

“Bellatrix tried to kill you?” Lupin asked with a concerned frown.

“Actually….I don’t think she was trying to kill me…” Tonks said shrugging “I mean she could have done that while I wasn’t looking, instead she was...toying with me…”   
“Well, that’s because Bellatrix has a few loose screws…”  Sirius growled angrily “She loves the foreplay, torturing and toying with her victims and all. Damn Tonksie, that was a close call...”

“It was lucky that you met Mr. Moody…” Lily said grabbing her hands.

Tonks nodded. She had purposely omitted the part where she had sort of dueled Bellatrix, since she had no explanation about how she’d been able to do spells she had not learned yet. 

“I suppose that’s enough reason to use a Fidelius….” Snape said rubbing his chin in thought “maybe…”   
“Well, that’s the only reason I can give you. That’s all I know. Mum told me to be wary this year, especially when I visit Hogsmeade.”

“Well, old Bella can go swallow Bundimun for all I care…” Sirius growled “She’ll have to pass over my dead body if she wants to lay a hand on my baby cous…”

“Yeah, that won’t do.” Tonks sighed “Don’t be stupid and go throwing yourself at Bellatrix for my sake, Sirius. She’s nasty...and the last thing I want is any of you harmed.”

“Well, we can’t stand aside and do nothing…” James said.

“Honestly, I doubt she’d try anything right in front of Dumbledore’s nose…” Tonks said shaking her head.

“Well, either way...don’t mind me if I stick to you like flobberworm slime… “ Sirius said decisively.

“Count us in, Pads…” James said with a nod.

“Yup…” Peter also agreed.

“And no need to ask Moony...he was in even before he knew about the ordeal, were you not?” 

Lupin answered with a smile.

“Naturally. I promised Mr. Lupin to take care of her…” 

“Ted asked you that? Hey.. why didn’t he ask me that? I’m the older cous….that gives me the big brother role…”

“Maybe because you can barely stay out of troubles, Pads…” James laughed.

“And Moony is the good boy…” Peter nodded.

“Good point…”

“Well, it seems you just got yourself your own Gryffindor escort…” Lily laughed.

Tonks sighed as rolled her eyes. This wasn’t what she had intended when she decided to tell them about her encounter with Bellatrix. 

“I can take care of myself, mind you.” Tonks pouted.

“Considering your clumsiness, you’re more a danger to yourself than anything else…” Snape said.

“And yet, I’ve survived almost thirteen years like that, thank you…” Tonks winked at him.

“And I still wonder how…” 

 

Lupin hadn’t realized how much he’d missed the noisy chatter of his friends until now.  Even though he’d enjoyed his time with his parents and the peace and quiet of the scenery of the Highlands, it was this noisy and warm fuss what made him feel at home.  He smiled as he watched his friends laugh and play around.

Suddenly, his line of view was blocked by a colourful metallized wrap.Tonks was waving a colourful wrapped lollipop in front of his nose.

“Muggle lollipops…” Tonks smiled as Lupin picked the candy “I love them. When I was younger, my grandmother would slip one of this into my pocket when my mom wasn’t looking. They’re not as flashy as the ones you brought me from Hogsmeade; but they taste great…”

“I haven’t had one of these since I was little…” he chuckled “My mum used to bring me one these whenever she came back from work.”

“Ah...I forgot your mum is a muggle. Silly me…” Tonks said  popping the candy into her mouth. 

“Yes” he smiled looking at the lollipop “ I haven’t had the chance to ask… how are you feeling?”

“Me?I told you...I’m peachy. Takes more than a psychopath aunt to mess me…” 

“I didn’t mean that…”

Lupin turned to look at her. The boy couldn’t say why, but he sensed something slightly unsettling about her. Perhaps it was his own silly paranoia or, as Sirius liked to call it, neurosis. Tonks was as energetic as always and as lovely as he remembered her from the last course, but somehow he sensed as if something wasn’t quite right. 

“I mean...of course that the encounter with Bellatrix is really worrying, but I was talking about your relapse…”

“Oh, that…” Tonks said thoughtful “It was little tough this time, but I’m a tough cookie.We  Hufflepuffs can take hard blows and still stand straight. Don’t worry…”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there…”

“Hey, it’s alright. I’m sure you had it rough, too…”

“Huh?”

Tonks wanted to slap herself. She wasn’t supposed to know he was a werewolf after all; but she had meant what she said. She had a bad month in bed, but her suffering couldn’t be compared to the pain of the transformation that Remus had to endure; the newer scars in his face were more than proof of that.

“I mean...hiking and all…”

“That’s hardly comparable, Dora…”

“Oh never mind about that…” Tonks chuckled “but if you want to compensate me. How about you tell me more about patronuses in my next tutoring?”

Lupin smiled. That was a topic he enjoyed and would be delighted to oblige.  

 

***

When they arrived to Hogwarts, Tonks had to admit she was exhausted. She had partially lied to Lupin about being peachy, the truth was, ever since her encounter with Bellatrix, she had noticed that her stamina had been failing her. It was thanks to her morphing that she was managing to keep her usual facade up, but keeping up the morph was adding an additional strain to her already crumble energy. As a result, Tonks was particularly clumsier; the girl had tripped over the steps in the station; knocked the oil lamp from the carriage and crashed against a group of Fifth year Slytherins. Even Sirius noted that she was being clumsier than usual, but the group had just laughed and Tonks had smiled apologetically.

“Are you sure you don’t want us to carry you to your table?” Sirius chuckled.

“Hush, Sirius. I’m perfectly fine…” Tonks said waving her hand and smiling at Remus who seemed particularly concerned “See you later!”

Tonks turned away and made it to her table; half way through, though, she lost strength in her legs and barely missed the ground if not for the tight grip that had caught her arm.

“I saw that…” Snape said raising an inquisitive eyebrow at her “And it is the fourth time tonight.”

“You should be used to see me trip over, Severus…” she said in a hush “Thanks…”

“Not the tripping. That wasn’t a trip, Nymphadora. You lost balance because your legs failed you. It was the same on the stairs…”

“Since when are you paying me so much attention, huh?” she chuckled.

“I’m the only one neutral enough to pay proper attention. Lily is too distracted with Potter; and those three are simply fooling too much to see. Lupin might notice if he stopped mooning about you…”

“Remus wouldn’t moon about me…” Tonks said shaking her head “And Severus...I could almost say you sound worried…”

“Perhaps I am…” 

Snape made a turn and headed to the Slytherin table without another word. Tonks stared at him slightly shocked by the confession, but shook her head and dropped on one  of the empty seats and waited for the ceremony to end.

  
  


***

 

The first weeks of Tonks’s  third year could have been better. Her classes were alright, she was a good student and the teachers liked her; unfortunately, the student body- the female student body to be more precise- wasn’t that kind and Tonks wished she could make them see that their annoyance was wrongly aimed. 

The main reason for her struggle laid on four Gryffindor boys that had decided to hit adolescence that certain year. James and Sirius were good looking and charismatic enough to have their generation and a few older and younger girls drooling for them, Peter wasn’t to bad himself and Lupin, well, Tonks couldn’t be impartial to him. She fancied the boy, of course that to here none of the Marauders could be as handsome as him. Unfortunately, she wasn’t the only one who had noticed that he was rather handsome and most girl weren’t too happy with the four boys constant attention on her. 

Tonks wasn’t a bulliable girl, of course, but having to handle the girls poisonous glares and untactful comments was an extra energy drain that she was barely handling and by the end of the week, she was feeling as if she had just come out from her week of finals.

“Here…” a voice said.

Tonks was in the study room, sitting in the furthest table at a corner with her head resting over the table and fighting an urge of nausea. She sensed the seat shift weight and hear the soft knock of a vial being placed on the wooden surface.

“Wotcher, Severus…” she said tiredly barely raisin her head to see the small vial of red potion standing in front of her face “what’s that?”

“It isn’t a solution, but it should help. It’s a vitality potion that I brewed yesterday. I made several vials if you need more…”

“Wow...you’re really making me think you care. Are you really Severus?”she said taking the vial and swallowing its contents.

“Don’t overthink it. I just don’t want you to mess up  when we go with Slughorn for the first gathering of the year…” Snapes said opening his book “It’ll make you feel better, but it won’t solve the problem of your exhaustition. Care to explain what’s wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong. I’m just...tired..”

“Tell me something that isn’t obvious, Nymphadora…”

“I don’t know. It is the truth. I get tired easily these days…”

“If you’re not fighting me for calling you Nymphadora, then something is definitely off. Go see Madam Pomfrey…”

Tonks sighed.She had considered that, but she already knew that the mediwitch would find nothing wrong as usual. 

“I doubt it will make much difference…” 

“Is it a side effect of last month?”

“Maybe...I don’t know…” 

Tonks pushed herself straight and looked around. The Marauders had entered the hall, but they had been intercepted by a group of Gryffindor girls. She saw a brunette girl that was talking cheerfully to Lupin as the boy smiled at her.

“He hasn’t noticed, has he?”

“What?”

“Usually Lupin is the first one to see that you’re not well…” Snape replied without lifting his eyes from his book “He hasn’t yet, which is disappointing at some extent…”

“I am fine...that’s why he hasn’t said anything.”   
“Liar. Even I noticed…” Snape replied staring her from the corner of his eyes “he’s distracted….that’s different…”

“He has other priorities, so what?” Tonks shrugged.

“Hmph…”

“Hey. you two…” Lily greeted them as she slip in the seat in front of them “Sorry I’m  late. What are you staring…?”

The girl turned her head to see what Tonks was looking and her brow furrowed in irritation. 

“Those girls…”

“You sound annoyed. Do you know them?” Tonks asked taking off her eyes from the girl that was speaking so cheerfully with Lupin.

“Yeah. They are my dorm mates…” Lily sighed “They’re a bag of crazy  hormones. They spent last night talking about how hot those four are. I guess they’ve decided to take initiative…”

“Oh…”

“Don’t worry, I’m sure Remus is just too polite to tell her off…” Lily said smiling at her.  

Tonks smiled back weakly. In one of her delusional feverish nights, Lily had offered to take care of her and as result, Tonks had unintentionally confessed how much she liked Lupin and how much she missed his company. Tonks was glad that she had told old that silly chat on Lily and not on Sirius, otherwise she wouldn’t have the guts to face Lupin ever again.  Lily had promised to keep her secret, but there was something in the girl’s smile that made Tonks feel awkward. The other one to know her secret was Snape, but she knew the boy wouldn’t say anything. She knew it.

“ What?”

“Dorcas has set her eyes on him…” Lily explained “But don’t worry. Remus isn’t interested in her…”

“Honestly… It’s okay if he is. He’s a good boy, he deserves a chance to find a girl that likes him…” Tonks shrugged. She pulled all of her energy into looking back to the book infront of her “Just because I like him...doesn’t mean he has to like me back…”

“Oh Tonks...you don’t know what you’re saying…” Lily sighed. The girl would have loved to tell the younger Hufflepuff that Lupin was head over heels about her, but it wasn’t her place. Lupin was the one who had to say it.

“You have to be  blind or really stupid to  not to notice he’s interested in you…” Snape said cuttingly and Lily had to admire the boy’s straightforwardness.

“I know he’s interested in me, but not in that way…” 

Tonks knew she wasn’t girly; in fact, she was more into the tomboyish side. Being a Metamorphmagus had made her lose interest on grooming. She did brush her hair and kept herself presentable, but unlike other girls from her age or older, she didn’t bother to wear make up or use any accessory except her patented hood or anything that would keep her hair concealed. She wasn’t surprised that boys wouldn’t see her as a girl at all, and even if Lupin did see her as one, his feelings were more into the younger sister side. She was okay with that; as long as he was happy she would be happy. That’s how that worked, wasn’t it?

“You’re as dense as as bumblebee juice...”

“What? AH forget it….” she said tiredly. She didn’t have energy to think of it “Is  _ Agapanthus   _ used in Expectorant Serum?”

“Yes, but only on females that aren’t pregnant. Otherwise you have to switch the the ingredient…” Snape said “Are you taking Healing Draughts and Alchemy as an optative this year?”

“Yes. It sounded like a useful subject…” Tonks shrugged writing down something on her parchment “Ah yes...it says it in here, agapanthus can have oxytocic effects causing contraction that can lead to early births or miscarriages. Substitute with peppermint in cases of pregnancy and adjust the dosage…”

“Oh, are you aiming to become a healer?” Lily asked “I considered that signature last year, but I heard it was quite complicated…”

“Not really. My career aims are a little different. I just thought it’d be useful…” Tonks shrugged and covered her mouth when she yawned “Sorry...it must be the whole silence in the room. It is making me sleepy…”

“I’ve seen you do that a lot recently…” Lily said resting her cheek on her hand and looking Tonks in a way that reminded a little of Andromeda “are you sleeping alright?”

“Yes, I’m alright…” Tonks smiled “I’ll be right back. I need another book…”

“Don’t knock down the shelf…” Snape warned her without lifting his head. 

“That was a one time thing and it was an accident…” Tonks said rolling her eyes and walking away.

However, Tonks prayed in her insides that she could get the book without casualties. She was extra careful with her steps as she read the tittes on the books and it took her several minutes before she found what she was looking for.

“Hah, look if it isn’t that Half-Blood scum…”

Tonks let out a sigh. She’d managed to avoid her Slytherin bullies for the past weeks successfully. Boreas wasn’t know for his studying habits and she would have never foresee stumbling with them in the library from all places. It was unlucky that she had to meet them right then when she had absolutely no energy to fight back.

“Leave me alone, Boreas…” 

Tonks picked up her book and made a turn to leave; but as expected the Slytherin wouldn’t be so easy to shake off. Burkes and Yaxley were blocking her path even before she had given two steps.

“Saw the news about that traitorous family that was murdered last month...for second I had hoped it had been yours. It was a disappointment  when I read their last names….”

“Well...what a pity. I am sorry to  _ disappoint you _ by being alive Boreas; but unfortunately for you...I’m not planning on dying any time soon, mind you. Now if you two, pair of kobolds can move out of the way…”

Of course, Yaxley and Burges did not move an inch.

“Ah...but we are not done here yet…”

Tonks was too tired to deal with it and she seriously considered taking out her wand and hex the trio, but figured that getting a detention so early in the year would do nothing to improve her already bad start.

“I’ve heard rumours….” Boreas said crossing his arms.

“I didn’t take you for a gossiping lad, Boreas. You impress me…”

“Heh, there’s a price for your head, did you know that?”

“Really? I doubt any of your little pureblood fanatic friends would want to have my repulsive head hung on their living room, so it is nothing but a rumour…” 

“Or is it? I hope you know greater things are coming. Well, in your case it’d be more like ominous things and I’m considering….”

“Considering what? Offer me as present to some crazy purist Wizard who wants to control the world so that you can fall into his good side?” Tonks said glaring at the Slytherin boy “I am afraid I am not that valuable...so I might not be a good present…”

“Maybe not...but hearing you beg for mercy would be worthy enough…”

“You’re a sadist, Boreas. Sorry if I don’t share your peculiar sadism…” 

Tonks tried to force her way through Yaxley and Burges, but both boys were a few inches taller and significantly stronger. Not that size and strength mattered, she had learned that from martial arts with her dad, but she wasn’t in her best shape at the moment. The two Slytherins pushed her back and Tonks had to grab one of the shelves to stop herself from falling into an undignified position in the ground.

“Want to try that again, Half-blood scum…?” Boreas smirked.

“We have done this for two years, Boreas…” Tonks said annoyed “Don’t you have better things to do with your life?”

“Oh, I can make some time to enjoy myself every now and then…”the boy replied. He had pulled out his wand from his sleeve and was twirling it between his fingers “you know I’ve always been curious of what you keep under that hood of yours…”

“Haven’t your parents taught you  it is improper to ask a lady what’s underneath her clothing?”

“I see no ladies here, do you?” Boreas smirked at his two companions “ _ Caput repulsio!” _

Automatically Tonks felt a pull on her head and the hood of her rob was violently snatched off her head. The girl let out a soft groan of pain and thanked that today her hair was a dull mousy brown. She’d  been too tired to keep up the morph in her hair so she’d dropped it while ago.

“Ah...disappointing. There I expected something a little more interesting…”

“WHat did you expect? That I had a second head?” Tonks growled irritated.

“Heh...maybe we can fix that…  _ Anteo… _

_ “ _ Oh no, you don’t…” Tonks said. She was starting to get impatient. If they were going to hex her, she might as well fight back. To hell if she had  to get detention…

_ “Tarantallegra” _

“... _ culatia…” _

Tonks dodged the white light from Boreas charm at the same time as she casted hers on the three Slytherins. The three boys legs began to dance hysterically. The girls watched them for a few minutes before cancelling the curse as she walked back to her table fixing her hood back up.

“That took you awhile…” Snape said when she arrived “Lily was about to go check…”

“Good thing you didn’t. Had a bad meeting with some old nasties that ended up with some curses…”

“What?” Lily snapped horrified “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine...It seems I’m better a dueling that Boreas and his two followers.” Tonks replied “I see they decided to study with their new friends…” 

Tonks said looking at the four Marauders sitting a few tables from them and talking cheerfully with the group of Gryffindor girls. She told herself that she  didn’t feel irritated by the fact that Lupin seemed to be enjoying himself with Dorcas and instead blamed it all on her encounter with Boreas.

“I’m sure they just… got caught in the conversation…” Lily tried to excuse them “ Where are you going?”

Tonks had used a reducing spell on her things and was now putting them inside her bag.

“I need a stroll…” she replied “I need to release some steam. I’ll see you later, Severus…”

Lily and Snape watched Tonks make her way to the door in an irritated pace and leave the hall. The two friends exchanged looks and Lily glared at the four Marauders before returning to her own work.

 

Tonks had no idea of where she was heading as she left the castle. She just felt like she needed some time alone and fresh air, so she had walked down the grounds until she could barely make out the tip of the Astronomy tower behind her and sat down. The afternoon was pretty with clear skies and a gentle breeze, but there were no students roaming the castle grounds. Most of them seemed to prefer to stay indoors or restrict their strolls to the grounds that were closer to the castle; either way, to Tonks, it was better like that. 

The Hufflepuff girl rested her head against the three trunk and breathed in the fresh air. It carried the scent of wild flowers and grass that made her feel at home and, slowly, she drifted off into a restless sleep. 

 

***

 

Lupin was starting to get anxious, but being the gentleman his mother had taught him to be, he couldn’t just brush off Dorcas. The girl had come to ask him for help with the DADA report about Wraiths and he felt bad about declining. He had expected it to be just a couple quick questions, but the girl had kept talking and talking, and half an hour later, she had still not asked the so called questions regarding the report. 

He had seen Tonks talking with Snape. The black haired Slytherin had set a vial of something in front of Tonks as he sat down on her side. The girl had raised her head, said something and then swallowed whatever the vial had contained; after that, the pair had fallen into casual conversation and he sense a small pinch of envy; he felt a wave of gratitude to Lily, when the Gryffindor girl had sat down breaking the pair. 

“And how was your summer?” Dorcas smiled “I’ve been talking non stop, but you haven’t told me about yours…”

“What? Oh...eh...it was alright…” he had shrug

Tonks had gotten up from the table and vanished from view. Lupin guessed that the girl had gone to retrieve a book, but as the minutes passed and she didn’t reappear, he began to feel anxious. After almost 20 minutes, the girl had returned pulling her hood and looking restless and upset. He saw her say something to Lily and Snape and then rush her way out of the hall.

“Eh...Meadowes. I thought you said you had...questions about Wraiths?”

“Oh, yes. I was having such a good time that I totally forgot…”

“Ahm, sorry but...I kinda need to go. Maybe I can help you some other time?”

“Ah, of course! I’ll see you around then, Lupin.”

Lupin smiled at her politely as he got up from the table and made his way to Lily and Snape’s table. As soon as he arrived, Snape gave him a quick look before going back to his reading; on the other hand, Lily seemed to be very irritated with him..

“Oh, so now you remember to come…” Lily glared at him crossing her arms “Had so  much fun hanging around Dorcas that forgot we existed?”

“Sorry, she asked me to help her with the report about wraiths; but then she just kept talking and talking...where’s Dora?”

“And now you remember her…” Lily scolded her “She had a run with Boreas and company. Who knows what those idiots told her. She said she wanted to take some air. Honestly Remus...you have to be more careful. You don’t want Tonks to get the wrong idea about you…”

“About me…?” 

“Yes, what if she thinks you’re interested in some other girl?”

“Lily, I appreciate your concern, but really….”

Lily rolled her eyes and sighed in disgust.

“Why do you have to be so  thick? Fine...Go find her...hush, what are you waiting for?”

Lupin was unsure of why Lily seemed to be so annoyed with him, but he decided that he’d deal with it later. 

Finding Tonks was easier than he had anticipated maybe because he’d come to know the girl’s habits or because he, somehow, could sense her lilac perfume even when he didn’t have the extra boost of the full moon. She was fast asleep with her head slightly tilted to her left and her back pressed against the knotty tree trunk; a lock of mousy brown hair had fallen over her shoulder and he noticed that the girl looked a little ill. 

Lupin took off his robe and put it over her shoulders carefully and making sure not to wake her. Giving the sleeping girl a last look he sat down by her side. Even if Hogwarts was, in general, a safe place, there was still some sort of danger for a girl that slept carelessly under a tree. He hadn’t spent more than a couple minutes by her side when Tonks seemed to stir. The girl was trashing and moaning in her sleep.

“Dora….” he said softly trying to shake her awake “Dora...wake up, Dora…”

It took him  a few minutes to wake her. Tonks was slightly confused when she found him  in front of her and it took her another several minutes to remember how and why she was there. 

“Ah...I fell asleep…” Tonks said rubbing her head “How did you find me?”

“I have my ways…” Lupin shrugged “You’re probably the only person who would walk all this way to have some air, Dora…”

“I needed the walk…” she yawned “I originally thought of going to the owlery, but Millie is with my parents. I didn’t plan on falling asleep though…” 

“You’ve been doing it a lot recently. Are you alright?”

“Oh...so you noticed…” Tonks said trying not to feel a little pleased about the fact that he’d been paying attention to her.

“Of course I noticed. You’re not quite as energetic as you usually are, either…” Lupin replied “ Dora, if you’re feeling ill…”

“I’m alright. Just tired...it’s been a rough start of the year. I guess I need to fall into routine again…” she smiled at him “So...how was Meadowes?”

“What?” 

“You two were...having fun back in the library. You looked happy…” Tonks shrugged repeating in her head that she wasn’t jealous.

“Oh...more like she was having fun and I was being polite…” he sighed “She asked for help with a report and I accepted to help, but after telling me what she’d done during summer for half an hour, she never got to ask me anything about wraiths....”

Tonks didn’t know whether to laugh or shake the boy. Dorcas had obviously used that report as an excuse to talk to him and she wasn’t sure if Remus was being too innocent or to silly to not notice. 

“What time is it? I am supposed to meet Severus at 3 pm…”

“It’s 2:00…” Lupin replied then added with a bit of scorn “You’re spending a lot of time with him…”

“Oh, well. It can’t be helped. We work together helping Slughorn.” she replied curling against him and covering herself with his robes “Slughorn leaves us some potions to work on every now and then and well...we work together on them. He won’t admit it, but I’m sure he enjoys company more than he cares to admit and besides...when you get stuck in one of the recipes, two brains are better than one...even if he says I am an incompetent.”

“You are not. You’re already better in potions than I’ll ever be…”he replied letting her rest against him “Are you still sleepy? Maybe you should skip it today…”

“I’m alright. That nap helped a bit and it’d be bad to skip the first gathering of the year. Thanks for your robe, by the way…”

“I didn’t want you catch a cold…”

“Always the gentleman. Where are the rest of the Marauders?”

“Entertaining the Gryffindor girls, I reckon.”

“And why aren’t you there?”

“Because I prefer your company…” Lupin replied frankly “Honestly, those girls make me a little nervous…”

“Remus Lupin, the ace in Defense Against Dark Arts and who is absolutely not afraid of going specter hunting is scared of girls...really…?”

“I am. If only all girls were like you, that wouldn’t be a problem.”

“Remus, if all girls were like me...the world would be a disaster…”

“No, I think it’d be a better place…”

Lupin meant what he said. It wasn’t the fact of girls being  _ girls _ what made him nervous, but rather the way girls seemed to be...cruel with each other sometimes. Tonks wasn’t like that, she was always kind and friendly to anyone who meant no harm of course.

“Ah-ah...there’s enough with one me in this world, mind you…”

Lupin laughed. He was glad that he had the fortune to know that  _ Only _ her, then. 

“Anyway...what do you think of Meadowes?”

“What?” 

“What do you think about her?”

“Eh...why is that relevant?”

“Just asking...if it’s too personal you don’t need to answer…”

“No it’s not that...it’s just a very random question.” Lupin shrugged “She’s fine...I suppose. She’s smart and nice, maybe a little too excitable...overall, I think she’s a good person…”

Tonks bit her lips trying to see if there was anything else under that description, but gave up since it was starting to give her headache.

“Ok...she sounds good, then.” Tonks sighed “I should go now. Severus will be annoyed if I get there late…” 

“What are you doing today?”

“Picking up flowers...mostly. Hey...maybe I should make Severus a flower crown…” Tonks smiled mischievously “Do you reckon he’d wear it?”

“I reckon he’ll  _  love  _  it as much as he like when James messes up in potions…” Lupin chuckled “but you can try.”

“I will...maybe I should make you one too.”

“Me?”

“I think you’ll look lovely with one…”

“I’ll rather see you with one…”

“I’ll consider it…”

Lupin snorted. He was sure that she’d look much better than him with a crown of flowers, but if wearing one would grant him the chance to see her, then so be it.

“Your hair is brown. I thought you said you didn’t like it…” 

“I...lose my morph when I’m asleep..sometimes…” she lied. The last thing she need was an overprotective Lupin hovering over her abnormal exhaustion

“I see…”

“Yes, well...I should go.”

“Let me take you there…”

“Remus, I’m sure I can get there without destroying the world.” she laughed.

“I have no doubt about that but…” Lupin grinned offering her his hand “I’ll have an excuse for another few minutes with you…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little jelousy, silly thoughts and bit of flirting.   
> I like the idea of having Snape being Tonks buddy. Tonks is a very accepting figure, I think and I think that if she was given the chance to know Snape as a classmate and not as her grumpy potions teacher, those two would have become really good friends (At least that's my headcanon ...don't judge me).  
> Tonks is changing a lot of things now.


	21. A helping hand doesn't always come from where you expect

"I am both happy and sad at the same time, and I'm still trying to figure out how that could be." 

—  **Stephen Chbosky**

 

Tonks tried hard not to be angry, annoyed and mostly, jealous, as the weeks passed. Dorcas Meadowes and her Gryffindor girls had become a regular sight around the Marauders from sitting with them every morning at breakfast to casually stumbling with them on Hogsmeade. The girl always made a point of pushing the younger Hufflepuff with a meaningful glare and taking her spot by Lupin’s side. Tonks wasn’t stupid, she had noticed the girls subtle advances on Lupin and the worst of all was that she seemed to be succeeding since Lupin seemed to be starting to enjoy her company. 

Tonks told herself that Remus and herself were nothing more than friends, he might even see her as a younger sister,  so if he decided that Dorcas Meadowes was the girl he wanted to date, she’ll be happy for him. Tonks had began to repeat those thoughts like a mantra each time Dorcas had showed up and pushed her away, and, as a result, Tonks had began to avoid Lupin and the rest of the Gryffindors; thinking that her presence was becoming an unwanted third wheel.

Unfortunately, her Hufflepuff reasoning couldn’t stop her from feeling miserable and her current state of emotional disarray was starting to mess up with her morphing abilities to the point that McGonagall had suggested her to take a break from her private lessons. Tonks had agreed, mostly because she could use the time to focus on other things like one little personal project she had come up with after talking to Slughorn one afternoon after her Potions class.

Slughorn had told Damocles Belby about her interests in his research. As a result the man had agreed to correspond with her -it had helped that both of them had been Hufflepuffs and that professor Sprout had also spoken on her side -and after a few exchange of owls, Damocles had seemed to grow fond of Tonks to the point that he had willingly shared his discovery with her: a potion named Wolfsbane. It was a very complicated concoction that would suppress most of the symptoms of Lycanthropy including the pain and the aftermaths of the transformation.  After a lot of discussion in which she had to admit that a very close and loved friend of hers was a werewolf and that she would be willing to do anything to help him ease the pain of the transformation, the man had agreed to teach her how to brew the potion and so Slughorn had sent both her and Snape to receive a couple private lessons with Damocles.

Needless to say, her determination to learn how to brew the Wolfsbane Potion was for Lupin. She was aware of the boys struggles regarding his little condition and she wanted to help him in any way possible. Lupin was a brilliant boy, unfortunately his skills with potions weren’t as good as his ability with his wand and as, Snape had kindly remarked at one time. Wolfsbane Potion was a horribly complicated recipe and done wrongly it could kill since aconite was awfully poisonous. After taking so many extra lesson in potions and Healing draughts, she considered herself decent enough to prepare it, however she wasn’t entirely sure that she could succeed without proper tutoring. Fortunately for her, she knew someone that wouldn’t be too inquisitive of her reasons and happened to be a potions prodigy. All she had to do was convince him to join her cause.l

 

That day during lunch, Tonks entered the Great Hall in a rush. She gave the hall a quick scan noticing that, once more, Dorcas was sitting with Lupin and both seemed to be enjoying a pleasant chat. She sighed sadly, she had considered to drop by an say hi to her friends since it felt like centuries since she’d had a proper conversation with them, but seeing as Dorcas and the rest of girls were hovering around she turned to the Slytherin table instead. Snape was sitting apart from the rest of Slytherins, reading a book as he eated. 

“Severus…” she screeched and the boy glared at her with annoyance as she slipped into the empty seat in front of her.

“What?”

“I need a favor…”

“Don’t you always? What is it this time…?”

“....I need you to help me learn how to brew the Wolfsbane…”

“...what? Why?”

“Eh...it’s personal…”

“... Then no…” Snape replied returning to his book.

“Severus…”

“Damocles taught you how to do it, too. Do it on your own…”

“I don’t trust my abilities! Come on Severus...you’re the one who keeps saying I’m an incompetent. What if I brew it wrongly and end up killing the person?”

“So you are planning to give it someone? Friends with a wolf, aren’t you?”

“That’s… I told you, it’s personal. Please, Severus…”

“Amd what do I earn from this?”

“My eternal gratitude?”

“No, thank you…

“Ok, fine. I’ll do whatever you want...just help me...please….”Tonks begged.

Several minutes passed and suddenly she felt something heavy land on her head. Snape had pounded her with his book in a gesture that had become his patented way of interacting with her. The hit didn’t hurt, Snape wasn’t mean enough to actually harm her, but he definitely found it amusing. The truth was, he was willing to help her with the Wolfsbane even if she hadn’t had anything to offer him. The potion was challenging recipe and he had been wanting to try it ever since they had seen Damocles prepare it. 

“Meet me in the dungeons today at five. I think I know where were can work on that potion.” he said “ ALso, we need to get the ingredients, too. Most of them aren’t in the student supply so…”

“Well have to come up with something to get them from Slughorn…”

“Precisely…”

“You have potions today, right?”

“Yes...what are you planning to do?”

“I don’t have lessons after midday. What if I  drop by and distract Slughorn and you go pick out the ingredients ?”

“You’re asking me to steal them?”

“Well...I would do it, but since...I lack the hand to chose….”

“Fine, I’ll do it. What kind of distraction are you planning to do…?”

“An explosive one…”

“....”

“Don’t worry, it’ll be harmless, but I’ll kill two birds in one go. I’ve heard Boreas isn’t too brilliant with potions…”

“Huh...you’re going to mess up with his potion?”

“Something like that… take it as my way to...mmm...get revenge while accomplishing our goal...”

“Alright.” Snape said getting up  “Don’t be late…”

“Ha! Thank you, Severus!!!”

Tonks had made the intent of hugging the boy, but Snape stopped her by pounding her once more with his book. The girl rubbed her head and  pout-glared at Snape who only smirked in amusement. Perhaps Tonks had actually managed to break him and perhaps, only perhaps, he was did consider the Hufflepuff annoying girls as a friend, a real one.  Snape grabbed his book and got up from the table as Tonks playfully stuck her tongue at him. The boy shook his head and walked to the door, but before leaving the Great Hall he looked at the Gryffindor table. The Marauders were immersed in cheerful talks and after a quick looks he found Lupin. The Gryffindor girl, that Lily had come to feel annoyed by in Tonks’s sake, was sitting with him and talking non stop. Snape noticed with some sort of satisfaction that the boy, even though he was smiling, did it out of courtesy, while any other sign of body language was clearly awkwardness. Too bad that Tonks’s sharp observation skills seemed to be biased by her own personal feelings or she would have noticed it, too.  Nevertheless, Snape made a decision, that if he considered that Lupin was being too much of a noble idiot, he would knock sense into him one way or another.

 

***

An hour after lunch, Tonks was making her way to the dungeons with a bag of freshly dried mandrake. Making a distraction in Slughorn’s class was an easy task. All she had to do was go to Sprout, offer to bring the fresh mandrake roots to Slughorn and enter the classroom with her most innocent smile. Slughorn knew her well and wouldn’t think twice about letting her in even if it was in the middle of one of his classes. As a matter of fact, it would help her plan to distract him. Slughorn was easy to distract, all you needed to do was the proper ingredient and the proper questions, and the man would get lost in his speech. As a Slughorn  proudly introduced her to his students as a “quite dedicated and absolutely talented young witch” she caught Snape rolling his eyes and quirking an eyebrow at her in a “this is your idea of distraction?” look. She chuckled and mouthed a mute “Wait and see…” and winked at him. She then thanked Slughorn by his words and turned to leave the classroom, but before leaving she caught at Sirius and James staring at her inquisitively; even Lupin was looking at her questiongly, but his look was diverted from her by Dorcas who had pulled his sleeve and was telling him something with a smile. 

_ Focus Tonks… _ she told herself adverting her look and walking up the stairs to the door. She made sure to walk casually close Boreas  who had a confused look as he tried to decided whether he had to put it Lion Fish spines or Fire Porcupine spines into his cauldron.. Tonks smirked and flicked her wand inside her sleeve.

“ _ Confundo”  _  she whispered softly before going out through the door. 

She waited a couple of minutes behind the wall holding her breath and then,  chaos was unleashed. Under the effect of her confundus charm, Boreas had added the whole bottle of  fire porcupine spines into the cauldron causing a noisy and disastrous explosion that sent all of the surrounding students into screams. The explosion was harmless, but the resulting product was a shower of disgusting and stinky potion mixture that would stain anything it touched in a brilliant orange and leave a foul smell of rotten eggs. Tonks heard Slughorn’s frantic screams as he tried to calm the class and she secretly hoped that the explosion had managed to reach Dorcas. 

Two hours later, after Slughorn had managed to provide all the affected students with some cleaning and deodorant potions, the fourth year’s potion class concluded and the students began to leave the dungeons commenting about the chaotic class. Tonks, who had been waitng in a corner, caught up with Snape discretely as he walked out of the potions class. 

“So…?”

“Impressive…” Snape said with the closest thing she had seen to a smile. “You’ll be delighted to know that the victims included Boreas, naturally, Yaxley, Burke and a bunch of Gryffindor girls minus Lily.”

“Heh… Delighted, yes. Now the important thing…”

“I got what we needed. Don’t worry…” Snape said turning around the corner “and knowing Slughorn, he won’t even notice it is gone…”

“He isn’t as neurotic with his stock as you are Severus…”

“Precisely…”

“Thanks god you’re not my potions teacher…”

“Judging by you admirable display of creating messes like that...I am grateful I am  _ not  _ your teacher.”

“Hey, it was cleverly calculated…” Tonks complained “I did use well based potion knowledge to create that mess, mind you. It’s not my fault that Boreas can tell fire porcupine and lionfish spines apart...”

“What…?”

“He already had the porcupine spines in his hand I just...gave him a push…”

“That boy is worse than Lupin in potions…”

“Don’t be mean...Remus works hard, unlike Boreas…”

“Hey you two...what are you mumbling so suspiciously?”  Sirius voice beamed from behind them.

“None of your business, Black.”

“It is our business cause I heard Moony’s name…” Sirius said putting his arm around Snape.

“Wotcher Sirius, James, Peter, Lily, Remus. Severus was telling me about an explosion during your class. Ah...too bad I didn’t see it. If only I had stayed a little longer…”

“What does it had to do with Moony?” Peter asked.

“I just remarked that Boreas seems to be worse at potions than Lupin…” Snape shrugged.

“Well...that’s true. Sorry Moony but you’re a troll for potions…” James laughed.

“Fair enough. I admit it isn’t my forte…” Lupin smiled at Tonks and the girl smiled back at him. 

“Yeah, who knows...maybe you’ll have been the one with the explosive cauldron if Dorcas hadn’t been giving you tips…” Peter laughed and earned himself a elbow from Sirius and firey glare from Lily.

“Yes, I suppose I should appreciate her help…” Lupin smiled apprehensively.

“Ah...good for you…” Tonks said cooly “Alright. I’ve got to go...Don’t forget our deal, Severus. I mean it!”

Before any of the group could say anything or attempt to stop her, Tonks had ran off and disappeared into the sea of students. 

“Is it just me...or she’s been avoiding us for the past two weeks…” Sirius asked crossing his arms over his chest.

“Nope, I think she is. She’s no longer eating breakfast with us either…” James said thoughtful “Or any meal at all…”

“She’s not in  the study hall when we go either…” Peter nodded “And she had missed the past two weekends in Hogsmeade.”

“Has she talked to you Moony?” Sirius asked with a frown.

“A….pair of times…” Lupin shrugged “but usually it is a quick hi. She hasn’t  been around the library when I go there to read…”

He had tried to talk to Tonks several times, but either he’d been interrupted by Dorcas coming out of nowhere or Tonks had said she was in a rush. He missed her company.

“Do you think she’s mad at us for something?”

“I don’t remember doing anything for her to be mad…” Sirius said with a pout.

“You bunch of fools…” Lily said annoyed “If you paid more attention you would know. Why are boys such idiots…”

“Oh, you know why she’s avoiding us, Lily?” James asked.

“I have an idea…” she replied crossing her arms “Maybe if you weren’t so distracted with your fan club you  would have noticed why…”

“What? What did we do? I’d understand that she is mad at us, but she’s never been mad at Moony. I mean he could throw her out through the window and she’ll still idolize him...it’s a little unfair, now that I think about it. I am her cousin!”

Lily stared at them with irritation sending a particularly bitter look at Lupin who shuddered at Lily’s poisonous glare. Tonks was probably heartbroken thinking that Lupin was interested in Dorcas. The Gryffindor girl was aware that it wasn't true and that Lupin’s real and only love interested was Tonks herself. But the fool had to be so noble and gentlemanly to reject Dorcas each time she came with a “question” about DADA; a question that obviously didn’t exist; and naturally, Tonks would get the wrong idea and now, she had opted to step out of the way. 

“I’ll let you think about it, you bunch of idiots….hmph” Lily said rolling her eyes. She then turned to Snape who seemed to be enjoying the Gryffindor’s exchange “What were you talking about anyway, Severus?”

“She wanted me to help her with a potion…” he shrugged.

“A potion?” Lupin asked with a frown. He had wasn’t sure what Tonks had done, but he knew that the explosion of Boreas potion had been provoked by her and he had seen Snape slip into Slughorn’s office while everyone was too busy with the commotion. What potion could she want to make that wasn’t in the students regular stock? “What potion?”

“Why don’t you ask her, Lupin?”

“I would...but it seems she prefers to talk to you rather than me…” 

Lupin knew he was being childish, but he couldn’t help but feel annoyed that Snape seemed to be the only one whose interactions with Tonks hadn’t changed in the past few weeks. The girl was still as friendly as she usually was with the Slytherin and since she’d been avoiding them, it seemed that she was spending more time with him and most likely Lily. 

“Maybe because unlike you… I'm not surrounded by girls that have spend the past weeks bullying her for being your friend... “Snape almost snapped at him “Ah, but I forgot. You four probably enjoy the attention too much to notice. Now if you excuse me...”

“Wait…  . They what? She didn't tell me that!” Lily said surprised “are you sure? “

“I may say otherwise, but she’s not that stupid not to know when she’s being attacked even if its passive aggressive.”

“I knew those girls were little harpies! But she should have told me! Why didn’t she tell me?”

“Do you really have to ask?” 

Lily groaned. Of course Tonks wouldn’t tell her. The girl would prefer to endure the rudeness in silence before telling Lily that her classmates, whom she probably considered friends, were a bunch of idiotic cruel adolescents. 

“But she told you…” Sirius said slightly offended “If she could tell you what bothered her why not tell us?”

“...She told me nothing…” Snape corrected him “To be fair, I’d be the last person she’d come to rant about her troubles. The difference is..I  _  paid  _  attention. I’ll see you later Lily.”

Snape turned and walked to the Slytherin house without looking at the four Gryffindors he had indirectly scolded. Sirius was brushing back his hair with guilt, James was exchanging looks with Peter and Remus had a look of concern and grief.

“Well, look at that…” James said softly “I suppose Snape does like Tonks. I’d never picture him giving us a lecture like that…”

“A well deserved one…” Lupin sighed. He needed to speak with Tonks.

 

***

Tonks was mashing the aconite dried flowers with the mortar while Snape was checking the the instructions for the last time.They were working inside an unused room that Snape assured here no one would find beside them; so the potion could be simmered there without risk of being found out by accident. 

“So...you’re avoiding the Gryffindor fools now?” Snape asked casually “I thought you idolized them…”

“I am...not avoiding them.” Tonks replied measuring an small amount of the aconite powder “I just...thought I should pull back a little…”

“Pull back…” Snape asked with a frown.

“Yes...well, they’re going to start going up for girls and I don’t want to be a third wheel or anything…” she replied putting the rest of the powder inside of a crystal jar “It isn’t good for their image among girls...you know? Having me running around with them…”

“Was it one of those girls who told you that?”

“WHat? No, no...of course not..I mean….” Tonks tried to lie, but Snape’s glare shut her instantly.

“Really...and you believed her…”

“She didn’t tell me anything….well she did, but not like that. I just...figured what she said was right. They’re bound to get girlfriends at some point. I can’t be hanging around and being all clingy with them, can I?”

“One would think that if the girl was reasonable, she would understand…” Snape said counting some black scarabs “Was it Meadowes who said it?”

“Eh? How did you…”

“It was a simple guess. Honestly, I’ll be disappointed of Lupin if he ends up dating her.”

“Don’t say that. She’s not that bad I suppose…” Tonks sighed “I mean yeah, I should be angry an all because of...you know, but hey...if he likes her and she likes him...that’s what matters at the end. You should understand my point…”

“And what makes you think that…?”

“Lily…” Tonks said quietly “I know you ...have feelings for her, and yet, even if you say that James doesn’t deserve her, you want them to end together, because that makes her happy, right?”

Snape did not answer as he methodically began to arrange the ingredients in order. Tonks suspected that that was the end of the conversation, but to her surprise her stoic friend continued.

“It’s not quite the same.”

“It is. I just hope Dorcas will treat him well...and be understanding. THen again if she likes him, I’m sure she will…”

“Yet she isn’t the one making cauldrons explode to get ingredients for a potion that should help him handle his transformation…”

From all comments, that was one Tonks had not expected and she dropped the bag of moonshells to the ground in surprised. The small shells scattered all over the rocky ground and Snape glared at her as she began to pick them up.

“I don’t know what you…”

“I’m not stupid, Nymphadora. If you figured it out, did you expect I wouldn’t? I give Lupin credit. He’s been quite discrete with his disapparitions during the full moon, but anyone who paid attention would have known…”

Knowing that there was no use denying, Tonks sighed. She picked the rest of the shells and put them back into the bag.

“How long have you known?” 

“Since last year…” Snape said stirring the potion “ I had my suspicions since second year, but I wasn’t sure until last year; and you? I suppose he didn’t tell you…”

“No, he hasn’t told me. I didn’t expect him to. He’s really...scared of it…”

“That’s why you wanted to learn how to brew the Wolfsbane…”

“Yes. It’s a chance for him to  be...almost normal, right?”

“You’re too much a Hufflepuff…” Snape sighed. 

“I’m proud of it…” she smiled “We Hufflepuffs aren’t the idiots everyone take us for…”

“Idiots you are...but in the good sense…” Snape sighed “ Lupin has to be much more of an idiot…”

“You sound like Lily…” Tonks chuckled “I know you two would love to see us together, but just because I fancy him doesn’t mean he feels the same. I’ll be alright. I’ll be happy as long as I know he’s happy even if he chooses some other girl…”

“Like I said...Idiot. I took you for someone who would fight heaven and hell for what you wanted, Nymphadora.”

“Don’t get me wrong...I am, but some fights...are not meant to be fought. In other conditions I would chase after him...but  if he’s into someone else... I’m not aiming to break them. Should I add this now?”

“Not yet, Damocles said the mix had to be pale silver first...I think it still look a little gray…”

Tonks stared into the cauldron.

“Yes, definitely gray…”

“How are you planning to verify if we did it right? I doubt you’ll be making Lupin drink it…”

“No, of course not. Damocles told me to send him a vial of our batch. He would check it. It’s silver now…”

Snape looked into the cauldron and nodded. 

“Put it in now..”

Tonks threw the aconite powder into the potion. It made a soft  _ plop _ and the silver mix turned to a very dark purple. They looked at it carefully. At least it did look like the mix Damocles had shown them.

“Well, it looks...alright. So now we need to let it concoct for three nights right?”

“Yes, then we add the minced roots and boil for another night. It should be done then…” Snape said checking the instructions.

“Alright…” Tonks sighed. 

“It isn’t as complex as it seems, so you should be able to do it after practicing…”    
“Does that mean you‘ll keep helping me?”

“Yes...but I don’t guarantee I won’t change my mind eventually…”

Tonks smiled brightly and hugged him tightly.  Snape, naturally, tried to push her off saying that he hated hugs, but Tonks didn’t care. As far as she was concerned, Snape deserved as many hugs as he could ever want.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, writing silly scenes about Tonks & Friendship turns out be one of my favorite things ( besides writing Lupin's scenes).   
> I just love thinking of Tonks being all cute and happy pestering Snape about silly things while Snapes is all about SHut up you dork.   
> ANyway, SNape has a soft spot at his lil friend, but he won't admit it.. not romantically, just a brotherly thing.


	22. Start with a brush

_ "I shall look at you out of the corner of my eye, and you will say nothing. Words are the source of misunderstandings."  _

_ —  _ **_Antoine de Saint-Exupéry_ **

 

After Snape’s little revelation and (un)intended lecture, Lupin had set himself the goal of talking to Tonks as soon as possible, but he hadn’t anticipated that the task would become as challenging as trying to keep Sirius and James out of detention for a week. Tonks proved that she was very gifted in the art of sneaking away from him and in the few occasions in which he managed to corner her someone, either a teacher or Dorcas and her friends, would pop up and when he noticed, the girl was gone.  His courteous side kept telling him that he had to be the gentleman his mother had grown him to be, but his Marauder side was starting to get very irritated with his “fangirls” as Sirius had started calling them constant interruptions.

On Saturday morning, Lupin had walked out of the castle making sure that none of his so called fangirls were around, and headed to the owlery. It was Tonks habit to visit the owlery on Saturdays, so he hoped that he’d run with her and have that needed talk. To his bad luck, the person he ran with in the owlery wasn’t Tonks but Dorcas. 

“Oh, Remus! What a coincidence. Did you need to send a owl, too?”

Lupin smiled courteously and shook his head. He was starting to believe James’s theory about the girls using a tracking spell to know where he was going and following him around. Sirius and James found the whole situation amusing, but to Lupin, it was becoming a burden, especially when they were preventing him from properly talking to the only girl he actually wanted to talk to.

“No, actually. I was looking for someone and I hoped to find her here…”

“Ah, sorry. It’s only me…” Dorcas shrugged “Who were you looking for? Perhaps I know where he or she is…”

Lupin hesitated. Dorcas seemed like a nice person, not like a girl who would go around bullying others, even less girls that were younger; but Snape’s words still ran fresh in his mind. Tonks wasn’t someone that could be bullied. The girl was incredibly headstrong and had not troubles standing for herself, but that didn’t mean she was unbeatable. 

“Oh, no it’s...fine. I’ll see you around…”

Lupin turned around with the intention of walking away and he realized - to his irritation- that Dorcas was walking with him. He was thinking of ways to get rid of hear when he caught a familiar sound.

“Remind me why am I the one doing this, Severus?”

“You were the one who told Slughorn that you had no problems climbing up trees…”

“Ah...and why didn’t you stop me from being such a dork?” Tonks cried out “You know I’m a total klutz. That should be a hint that me...and heights shouldn’t get mixed...”

“And miss this opportunity of seeing you mess up?”

“You...horrible...Murtlap…ah…”

Lupin looked up and his eyes widened in horror. Tonks was precariously balancing herself on the trembling branch of a tree and she seemed almost as horrified as he felt. Snape was standing under the same tree with his arms crossed. 

“Oh...those two again…” Dorcas said looking over his shoulder “A very interesting couple, don’t you think?”

“W-what?”

“I mean..she’s a Hufflepuff, and Snape is a Slytherin. One wouldn’t expect them to be together…”

“Wait...what? Together?”

“Oh, it’s a rumour that has been going on around for a while. They say those two...are dating…” Dorcas said “That’s why they spend so much time together these days…”

Lupin was speechless. That couldn’t be true. Snape wouldn’t have said what he said that day in dungeons if he had been dating Tonks. The Gryffindor boy took a deep breath trying to calm down and think rationally. 

Dorcas had said it was a rumour and 90% of the times, rumours were wrongly based information. Sure, Tonks and Snape spent a lot of time together, but because they were both Slughorn’s assistants and because she was avoiding them. It didn’t mean they were dating.

“For Merlin’s sake Severus. If I fall to my death….I’ll come back as a ghost and drop firedrops into each of your potions for the rest of your life…”

“You won’t fall to your dead. It isn’t that high and you have a hard head…”

“Ah...you just like to exploit me. Catch this…”

“Be careful. Don’t break them…”

“I’m more concerned about ME breaking than those stupid  berries…”

“Those berries are valuable…”

“THen why aren’t you up here instead?”

“Because I don’t climb…”

“Prat…ahhhh….”

Tonks heaved and grabbed one of the thickers branches to avoid falling from the tree. She took a deep breath and continued to pick the berries from the branch. Those better had be as valuable as Slughorn and Snape claimed them to be. 

Snape, who was standing  under the tree, turned around and caught a glimpse of a pair of people watching them.  Lupin and Dorcas were standing at the top of the hill. The boy seemed to be in his nerves as he watched Tonks move hesitantly on the branch and he looked  like he was ready to jump in at the minimal sigh of Tonks falling. Snapes snorted as an idea came to his mind.

“Nymphadora...be careful with that centipede that is hanging by your left. I think it might be poisonous…”

“CENTIPEDE? WHERE?”  she shrieked in horror. 

As Tonks began looking around her terrified, she lost her step and the branch she’d been holding  broke with a loud crack.

It was just a second, but before Dorcas could even react, Lupin had already ran down the hill with his wand in hand and waved it in a cushioning charm. THe spell flew directly at Tonks and broke her fall before she hit the ground.

“Aaaahhhh tell me it isn’t over me, tell me it isn’t over me…!” Tonks said shaking herself desperately and looking at Snape for help. 

“Sorry...I must have seen something else….”

“You...WHAT? Merlin’s pants, Severus! I could have died you know?”

“Don’t be stupid. As if you knight in shiny armor would have let that happen…” 

“My what?”

Her answer came in as tall boy with light brown hair and Gryffindor robes. Tonks was a little too shocked to react when the boy fell to his knees and grabbed her from her shoulders.

“Dora! Are you alright? Did you get hurt…?”

“Remus? What are you doing here?”

“I’ll let you two talk. I’ll take this to Slughorn…” Snape said picking the bag of berries from the ground and walking back to the castle.

“Severus you twit! Come back...I’m not done with you!” Tonks screeched trying to go after him, but was pinned down by Lupin.

“Dora…”

“We can talk later, Remus...I need to kick some sense into Severus snarky arse!”

“No, Dora...you’ve been avoiding for the past weeks, you’re not going anywhere until we talk. You can kick Snape later…”

Tonks let out an annoyed groan and crossed her arms. She didn’t like the idea of talking.What was he going to tell her?That he and Dorcas were officially a thing? She wasn’t sure if she could take that and act nonchalantly. She’d make Snape pay for this.

“Really, Remus...I think someone is over there waiting for you. You shouldn’t make her wait…” she said quickly “and I totally need to catch Severus and turn him into a tadpole…”

Lupin let out a sigh of irritation when he saw Dorcas standing behind them. He was going to throw away all his manners for once, he was getting tired of getting interrupted whenever he wanted to talk to Tonks. Lupin grabbed - much to Tonks shock- her hand and dragged her away and far from there.

Tonks was a little too shocked as she ran behind him, it was rare from him to act so impulsively. Lupin was always the one to stay cool and in control, while James and Sirius were the ones to jump  head in without thinking; but there she was running behind Remus Lupin to god knew where.

“Ehh….Remus…” she said breathlessly “Where are you taking me…?”

“Anywhere...as long as no one shows up to interrupt…”

After several minutes of running, they stopped in a small clearing at the edge of the forbidden forest. Lupin let go of her hand and tried to catch his breath. That was probably the rudest thing he’d ever done to a girl, but he was getting really desperate -and irritated- to think about his manners anymore. He’d go for Sirius style this time.

“Alright...now, we talk…” 

“Eh...I don’t think all that running was actually necessary, Remus…”

“Dora, it  _ was _ necessary. You’ve been avoiding me and if I hadn’t done that...you would have run off again…” Lupin said crossing his arms “Can I at least know what I did to displeasure you so much?”

“What? No, no...I’m not mad. Why would I be mad?”

“Then why have you been running away from me like if I had the plague?”

“I am not…” Tonks began, but seeing Lupins stern look she quickly added “Okay, maybe I am...a little…”

“Care to say why? Because honestly, I miss my friend…”

_ So do I _ . Tonks thought sadly.

“W-w-well….I just didn’t want to get in the way...you know…”

“Get in the way? Get in the way of what?”

“Well...you know….your courtship with Dorcas?”

“My what with who? Don’t tell me you...”

Lupin felt like smacking his face. Lily had been right all that time. He shouldn’t have been so nice to Dorcas. His simple gentleman’s manner had caused Tonks to misunderstand his interactions with Dorcas and it had made her avoid him for almost two months now.

“Dora...you got it wrong. There’s nothing between me and Dorcas…”

“Ah...you don’t really need to do this, Remus. It’s fine...I mean….it is totally normal for someone your age to  be interested in a relationship….and...did that sound like parents talk? Am I sounding like my dad?”

“No, I mean yes...I mean….that’s off topic. The point is...there’s absolutely nothing going on between me and Dorcas…”   
“She likes you…”

“She thinks she likes me...Trust me, she wouldn’t if she knew…”

He stopped himself in mid sentence,  but Tonks didn’t need to hear the rest to know what he meant. To Tonks that was a stupid excuse, if you liked someone you liked everything from that person. So why would his little problem change that?

“...and she shouldn’t care. Whatever it is, it’s you...it doesn’t change who you are.”

“It does… I don’t think; no, I  _ know _ she wouldn’t feel the same the moment she knew…”

“You don’t know that…”

“I do…” Lupin said. Maybe it was the wave of adrenaline from his run from earlier, but he was suddenly feeling very daring “I do...because, unfortunately, not every girl in this world is as accepting, comprehensive, innocent and overall wonderful as you…”

“Are you  sure you’re talking about me? Because I don’t think that’s describing me accurately…”

“In Merlin’s name, Dora. I’ve never been so certain in my whole life…” 

“I beg to differ. I mean...we are talking about you…”

“Once more...irrelevant. Dora, please don’t change the topic.”

“Eh...sorry…”

“I don’t like Dorcas. There’s  _ nothing _ between us ...nothing. She came with some questions about DADA and was too much of gentleman…”  _ and an idiot _ , he added to himself “to say no...and, Merlin, it was awkward. I just didn’t know what to say and Sirius and James weren’t helping….and… Why are you laughing?”

Tonks had broke into a fit giggles. There was something about Lupin being so not himself that was awfully adorable and she couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Nothing...nothing...sorry…” she laughed “It’s just that you’re so...adorable when you’re flushed hahaha…”

“I’m trying to be serious, Dora…”

“I know...haha...but really, it is so adorable…”

Tonks laugh was contagious and it didn’t took long before he too was laughing. 

“I’m not adorable… Dora, stop laughing...”

“You’re laughing too…”

“It’s because you’re laughing…”

“Haha...that makes no sense haha…”

They laughed together and both of them realized how much they had missed it the little moments like this one.  Lupin stared at her for few seconds contemplating the girl’s smile as she tucked a lock of Mousy brown hair behind her ear. Why was her hair still brown?

Suddenly Tonks looked up and her dark eyes locked with his; there was a strange pull in her kind eyes that he couldn’t put into words, and before he’d had time to reflect on what he was doing, he pressed his lips against hers. It was a gentle and shy kiss; his very first one and he- himself- was surprised by his own boldness. He had almost expected Tonks to hex him, but after her initial shock had passed, he realized that, not only was she not pulling away, but that she was kissing him back. By the time they pulled apart,both were flushed and slightly embarrassed.

“Oh...that...was unexpected…” Tonks said shyly.

“I…” Lupin said rubbing the back of his head embarrassed. Unexpected was an understatement, he had no idea where had gotten that courage to do it to begin with and he blamed at his high levels of adrenaline “I suppose I had to make my point…”

“Your...point…?”

“I don’t like Dorcas. I like someone else…”

“You can’t possibly mean…”Tonks said surprised “Wait...you do…”

“Dora...I just kissed you...do you really need me to explain that?” he chuckled.

“Ah...good point. Sorry...I think I’m still a little shocked. I mean all this time I was beating myself around the bush and feeling miserable because I thought you were fancying Dorcas….and you were actually fancying me??”

“You were miserable because you thought I liked Dorcas? Why?”

“Alright, Lupin...now you’re the one being stupid...I kissed back didn’t I?”

She had, Lupin realized, She had kissed back and as the thought kept popping in his head a silly grin painted his lips.

“So we were both being idiots…” Lupin chuckled “Does it mean you will stop avoiding me?”

“Does this mean we are dating now?”

“Only if you want…”

“And what do  _ you _ want?”

Lupin thought about it for a moment. The answer was simple; there were things that he wasn’t completely sure about, but he knew what he wanted.

“I do…” he smiled shyly taking her hand.

“Good…” Tonks smiled “because I do, too…”

 

****

Lupin and Tonks spent the next few hours sitting in the clearing with their fingers laced and feeling blessed by each other’s company as they talked about random things. Somehow, despite the sudden change of status in their relationship, they realized that it didn’t feel as awkward as they  expected, in fact, it was quite natural, even though it was something new for both of them. They laughed a little about how foolish both of them have been and were surprised that both of them had been convinced that the feelings weren’t mutual despite everything their friends said to convince them otherwise.

“Ah...I think we shouldn’t let them know yet…” Tonks said with a giggle “How about we make a bet to see how long it takes them to find out?”

“Find out?”

“Yup, I bet Severus or Lily will be the first ones to notice. Those two are pretty sharp in those things, but Sirius, Peter and James will graduate before they’d know…”

“You don’t give them enough credit. They can act like goofs, but they’re smarter than they like to pretend…”

“Do we have a deal then?”

“Are you really making a bet with me about this?”

“Well, makes it a lot entertaining don’t you think?” Tonks winked at him and he chuckled. 

“Alright...a bet that is.”

“Good, it’s always nice making business with you, Mr. Lupin…”she laughed “Now, I think I need to go back into the castle. There’s a certain Slytherin arse I have to hex…”

 

Lupin laughed. As much as he found Tonks’s indignation cute, Snape had, in someway or another, helped him by giving them a proper chance to talk. His Gryffindor honor demanded that he returned the favour. He didn’t want to let her go yet and, besides, there was something important that he had to tell her first. 

“Dora..wait…” he said pulling her hand.

“Uhm...what?”

“There’s….there’s something I need to tell you. Something you need to know before we continue with….eh, this thing…”

“Remus Lupin, don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts…” Tonks said quirking and eyebrow.

“I am not. Not in that sense…” he said “but you have to know and I want you to know it before you decide that...this  _ is _ what you want….”

“Oh...Remus, I think I already know you enough and no dark secret that you could reveal right now would change the fact that I like you…”

“It might...it...it isn’t the best secret and you know….I would think any less of you if it changed your decision…”

“Oh, for Morgana’s sake. Spit it out Lupin...what’s wrong?”

Lupin took a deep breath and he stared into Tonks expectant eyes. It was never easy telling other what he was, even less when you were telling the one person that could totally break your heart and so, he was having problems finding words. Perhaps Tonks knew him better than he credited her for; the girl seemed to notice his restlessness and she had taken his hand coursing him to relax. 

“Dora….I….”he began and the girl waited expectantly “I….I’m… I’m werewolf…”

Lupin blurted the last words and looked at the ground. He didn’t dare look at Tonks’s face for fear of what he would see in the girl’s expression. There was a small silent pause before he caught Tonks distinct soft giggle. From all reactions to the reveal, laughter was definitely not one that he expected: yells, pity, even fear, yes; but laughter, not a   skeptic laugh or even a cruel one, but rather a relieved one, was the last thing he’d seen coming.

“Oh, dear I’m sorry….I’m sorry…” Tonks chuckled trying to recover composure and failing “I’m not laughing of you, it’s just...You were all serious so I thought it’d be something worse. I’m sort of relieved…”

Something worse than being a werewolf. Lupin was starting to think that maybe Peter wasn’t all wrong when he said that Tonks might have some loose screws sometimes.

“Dora, I just told you I’m a werewolf...what could possibly be worse than that?”

“Well, I don’t know. That you had an illegitimate kid, maybe? I mean...that’d be so awkward considering you’re so young and all…” she chuckled “Alright sorry. I’ll pull myself together. Remus...I already knew you were a werewolf…”

“You...knew? What? How? Did Sirius…?”

“No, nobody told me. It wasn’t too hard to put everything together with your disappearances at Full Moons and your desperate fear and insistence of werewolves dangers. Honestly, it was either you were one or you were some sort of obsessive werewolf hunter.”

Lupin jaw fell open as he listened to girl. The boy was still shocked at the girl’s reaction and unable to speak, but Tonks smiled at him and that seemed to break the tongue tied spell that seemed to have fallen on him.

“How long...?”

“Since last year…”

“And...you never...asked me anything?” he said dumbfounded “ Why?”

“Well, I figured that if you didn’t tell me, it was because you didn’t want to.So I’d wait until you felt like you could tell me...no big deal.” Tonks shrugged.

Lupin stared at her in awe; the boy brushed back his light brown hair and chuckled in defeat shaking his head. He couldn’t beat this girl. 

“And for the record…” she continued “Before you start on that monologue, I don’t think you’re a monster...in fact, I think you’re quite an adorable thing... _ Mr. Wolfie…” _

Tonks winked at him and before he could say something she walked off whistling innocently. Lupin watched as she stopped in midway and  waved at him playfully, urging him to catch up and he smiled with the warmth of hope and joy burning in his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Snape shipped it and he went all the way to make that ship sail lol.   
> 50 points to SLytherin for that.   
> Sorry if you are a Dorcas Lover, I have nothing against her and I don't intend to make her the typical rival annoyng girl, but I just figured I needed someone to fill the teenage love struck and Dorcas seemed the right one.


	23. Gestures of hope

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage." 

—  **Lao Tzu**

 

Lupin had thought that keeping a secret relationship from his friends would be a challenging task, but it turned out to be the easier than trying to convince Sirius that setting dungbombs in Filch’s office was the worst possible idea for a prank. After making some acclarations to the Gryffindor girls- and probably some less friendly convincing courtesy of Lily - the girls had stopped stalking the Marauders as intensely as they’d have been doing before.  With that out of the way, Tonks had returned to her usual treatment to the four Gryffindor boys. 

Tonks proved herself to be quite adept into concealing secrets, as Lupin noted that the girl had very clever ways to conceal their “extra” affectionate treatment to each other, of course, it helped that they had already been in very friendly terms since the beginning and so her constant clinging over him wasn’t seen as rare to any of their friends. Lupin was starting to suspect that he’d be in the losing end of their little bet. 

“Well, boys….It’s finally friday. How about we go do some mischief for a change…” Sirius said excitedly “I kind of want to try out some transformations before the full moon and all…”

Lupin rolled his eyes. After almost four years of self study, lots of practice and failed attempts, Sirius, James and Peter had achieved  what could be considered, the greatest accomplishment in the history of illegal practices among the students in Hogwarts: They had become animagus. Now that his three loyal friends were free to turn into their chosen animals at will, the three boys were overly excited about the adventures they’d have during the full moons.

Needless to say, Lupin wasn’t as excited. Not that he didn’t loved the idea of having his friends around, but he was unsure if it’d be safe for the three boys at all. He had told Tonks - naturally behind his friends back- about it and the girl had assured him that if  _  Mr. Wolfie _ didn’t hurt her when she was a human, there was no real reason for him to hurt his friends when they were animals,too. In fact, Tonks seemed glad that Sirius, James and Peter had found a way to make him company during the full moons, since recently, the frequency of her relapses were becoming numerous and, if possible, more severe to the point that Lupin had forbid her from coming out to see him. The girl had agreed reluctantly, but she kept skulking about leaving Mr. Wolfie all by himself in those lonely nights. At the end, to ease her from her needless worries, Lupin had ended up telling her how his friends had illegally turned into animagus. 

“Honestly...I’m not in the mood. You know full moon is in a couple of days…” Lupin sighed “You three can go and practise…”

“Sounds fair. We don’t want to have a moody Moony skulking the whole afternoon, do we?” James laughed and Lupin rolled his eyes.

“Alright, it’ll be the three of us for today then; but what are you going to do without us?”

“Is that a question? He’s probably going to spend the afternoon in that book cave with Tonks…” James said smirking maliciously “When are you going to  man up and ask her out, Moony?”

Lupin snorted; if only they knew the truth; the boy had felt like laughing his guts out each time one of his friends came up with one of those teasing comments, but with the full moon over his back, he wasn’t in his greatest moods that day, so instead of laughing and declining the comment like he usually did, Lupin let out an annoyed groan.

“And when are you planning to man up and ask Lily Evans out?” he threw at him in annoyance.

“Touché…” Sirius laughed raising his hands.

“Auch...that hurt, Moony…” James replied faking hurt “Geez, full moons got you in a foul mood already. I wish Tonks luck dealing with you…”

“I’m sure Dora will refrain from making unnecessary comments, so you don’t need to worry.”

“It’s not like she would ever do anything that could make you mad anyway…” Peter chuckled.

“And….I’ve been meaning to ask…” Sirius said with a mischievous grin “Since when did you get permission to call her by her name?”   
“...I don’t. The only person around that calls her by her name is Severus. I just got a special permit to use her shortname….”

“That’s what Ted calls her…” Sirius observed.

“Yes, precisely. I just told her it was kind of weird to keep calling her by her last name when we are friends and she said I could use Dora if I wanted….” Lupin shrugged.

“Yeah, well...I have a suspicion that she’ll hex me in place if I ever tried calling her Dora, but either way...I like Tonksie better, anyway. Okay, you moody lad...go find my baby cousin and tell her that I sent you to her in the hopes that she can fix your foul temper for a change…”

Lupin glared at his friends as they burst into laughter, but didn’t comment on it. Sirius was probably right anyway, Tonks company would most likely improve his mood.

 He found her on sitting in the hand ladder as she searched for some book among the shelves of muggle books. Today her hair was cheek length, straight and in vibrant hue of teal that reminded him of deep sea water. She hadn’t notice his entry and he leaned against one of the shelves watching her pull out the books, flick through their pages and then return them to their places. This was probably the first full moon in which she wasn’t too ill to be moving around and even though she was tired, the girl seemed rather healthier than . 

“I thought you said heights and you didn’t get along…” he said when the girl saw him and waved.

“Wotcher, Remus and yes, we don’t quite get along, but today we decided to compromise…”she replied walking down the ladder carefully. 

Lupin moved to take her hand and ensure that the girl would not fall flat on her face when she got off the last step (something that happened quite regularly). Tonks smiled gave him a little peck in gratitude.

“You look edgy...full moon, I reckon…” she smiled tilting her head aside.

“Sirius wanted me to tell you that he’s sending me to you with the hopes that you will do something to improve my foul mood…”

“Ah...so it is bad mood this month…” she laughed “Well I prefer that than seeing you in pain. There’s no much I can do when you’re in pain, but...I might have a couple tricks to improve your mood…” she added winking at him and he chuckled.

Lupin had not doubt she would come up with any silly thing to make him feel better. It wasn’t like she had to do much effort anyway, since she wasn’t doing anything yet and he already felt much better. 

_ You’re acting like fool in love,  _ he thought.

“Here…” Tonks said throwing him a candy with colourful wrapping “Dad sent me a some new candies from London...muggle sweets so nothing like what you’ll get from Honeydukes, but delicious nevertheless…”

“Is that your trick to improve my mood?” Lupin said quirking an eyebrow “bribing me with sweets?”

“Maybe…” she smiled  innocently.

“You know too well…”

Tonks laughed. 

“Not that well...but you do have a weakness for sweets. Don’t let your fangirls find out though; unless you want to get sick with the amount of candy you’ll be receiving…”Tonks warned him as she popped one of the candies into her mouth.

“I’ll keep that in mind. The last thing I need is to get an upset stomach because of an overdose of chocolate,,,”

“You know what I’ve been thinking? Chocolate is supposed to be toxic to canines…” Tonks said tapping her chin “How come the rule doesn’t apply in here?”

“Dora….” 

“No...like really. Maybe I should keep you away from chocolate around  _ that _ time…”

“I don’t think that rule applies in this case…”

“Why not? It’s essentially a dog…”

“Not quite a dog…”

“Do you reckon that if I throw a chocolate bar at Sirius it might be harmful? You now like an super effective attack or something?”

“Dora, now you’re being ridiculous…” Lupin laughed.

“Well, my ridiculousness made you laugh….totally worth it…” Tonks said proudly leaning on his shoulder with her book on her lap “but I should ask professor McGonagall about it. Now I’m curious…”

Tonks began flipping through the pages of her book as she muttered something about making a mental note to ask her in her next private lesson and  began curling one of her teal colored hair locks on her finger absently; unconsciously, Lupin began caressing one of the locks that had fallen on his shoulder.

“I went for a colder color today…” she said absently “Not sure if it’d suit me, but I thought the color was pretty…”

“It looks nice on you. I said this before, any color looks good on you…” 

“Really?” she said looking at him as her hair turned a bright lime green color.

“Even that one…” 

“Oh really ...how about now…” 

She added morphing her nose into a goose beak and cross-eying in a very comical image. The first time she’d pulled that trick on him, he’d been the one to drop from his seat in surprise; but then, both of them had laughed until their stomachs hurt. Changing her face into hilarious combinations of animals was her favorite way to cheer up people, and no matter how grotesque or ridiculous they were, Lupin could only see the beauty of her intentions.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a better looking kappa in my life…”

Tonks shook her head and her features returned to their original shape. 

“Remus John Lupin, either you have a very strange sense of beauty or you’re just way to smitten by my charms to see how ugly I am…” she laughed.

“It’s called seeing beyond your pranks, Dora…” he said giving her a gentle kiss.

“You’re such a romantic fool…” she said hugging him “At least you’re feeling better now. Do you think Sirius will consider it a well done job…?”

“I still have to survive another night before the moon with them…” Lupin smirked “You’ll have to try a little harder if you don’t want me to hex them all in their sleep…”

“As if you would, Mr. I am gentleman…”

“Not when I’m in bad mood, Dora…” 

“Oh, fine...I tried the candies and the morphing. I’ve got one last thing in stock, if that doesn’t work...I promise I’ll make Sirius’s funeral something to remember…”

“And what is your last trick, I wonder…”

Tonks smirked. She pulled the boy closer and locked her lips with his.

“How about a snog?” 

 

***

“Remind me to send you to my cousin, next time you are in a bad mood , Moony. I have no idea how she does it, but she really fixes you when you’re in ogre mode. At least she should teach us the trick otherwise...”

Sirius, James, Peter and Remus were sitting in the Gryffindor table at dinner time. The three boys were telling him about their little adventure into the Forbidden Forest in animal form and the they couldn’t miss that obvious mood improvement in the young werewolf. 

Lupin snorted at Sirius thought. He would start getting moody more often if that meant that he got some minutes alone with Tonks, but there was no way that she would be teaching them how to fend of his bad mood. That was a trick reserved to her and only her. 

“She helps me relax...that makes it easy…” he shrugged.

“She’s looking well this month. Do you think she’ll be around with us?” James muttered. 

Tonks had missed the past two moons because she’d been to weak to step out of bed and even less, try to sneak out the Hufflepuff house. The last time, professor Sprout had to ask two older students to help her carry the girl into the hospital wing, since Tonks have been throwing up non stop. 

The wolf missed her, he could sense it; but what surprised him most was that small lingering sensation that he could only describe as worry. Mr. Wolfie, like she usually addressed him, was restless when he didn’t see the girl in a long time.

“I don’t know…” Lupin said thoughtful “If she’s feeling well, there’s nothing stopping her from sneaking out of her house.”

“That’d be interesting…” Sirius said “Do you think she’ll be  friendly with us, or that treatment is reserved to you?”

“Honestly...I’m more concerned that he will be a little jealous…” Lupin said with a frown “he’s...rather possessive of her, sometimes…”

“Hey...you don’t think  you’re passing a little of your feelings into you know who...and he’s seeing her as some sort of potential mate, do you?” James muttered.

“Ew...is that even possible?” Peter growled “It is technically an animal...no?”

“Yes, Peter…” Lupin sighed “I don’t know, James. Honestly I don’t even know why it bonded with her in the first place…”

“Yeah, that’s strange too…” 

“Well, we’ll see it tomorrow…”

The next day, Lupin woke up feeling in pain and very crabby. He was glad that it was a Saturday and he had no classes to attend. His plan was to sneak out and spend the morning with Tonks, while his friends were in Hogsmeade and then sneak back before the afternoon before they returned. Then he’d go into the Shrieking Shack to transform and his friends would join him his animal form.

“Maybe you should be in bed, Remus…” Tonks said carissing his head. 

They were sitting in their little reading spot. The boy was spread over the chair with his head cradled in Tonks lap. He was feeling the early pains in his muscles as they anticipated the upcoming transformation. His senses were over sensitive and every little sound and smell made him dizzy. The silence of the library in the weekends, with only Tonks soft whispering, her gentle strokes and her distinct scent of lilacs were a soothing comfort. 

“No...I’m honestly better in here. I’d have to sneak you in, if I wanted to be this relaxed in my room…”

“Don’t be silly…” she chuckled “However...considering that I could probably turn myself into Sirius or James without problem, that shouldn’t be too difficult. I want to see you explain why you’re sleeping on any of those two’s laps, though…”

“I’ll rather not…”

Tonks giggled and she traced the whitened scars on his face tenderly.

“Is it too bad?”

“It’s been worse. I haven’t felt it that bad these last few moons. It’s painful...but bearable…”

“I see. I have something for you…” 

“For me?”

“Ah-hah…” she said softly.

Tonks was usually loud and cheerful, but now she was being really quiet to not make him in pain with his sensible hearing; that simple gesture, made Lupin love her even more. The girl pulled out two vials of some milky white liquid.

“It’s a relieving draught made with Purplap fennel. It’s should help with the pain...it doesn’t prevent the whole pain from the transformation, but it should ease the pain before and after. It’s made for werewolves so...it should work.”

“Dora…” Lupin said pushing himself up a little “Where did you get it?”

“I...brewed it. Don’t worry, I got Severus to tutor me and I had an expert in this potion check it several times. Both said I had done good and that it was safe to drink…”

“You...brewed it? This was the potion that Severus was helping you with?”

“Eh...yes...among other things, too.” Tonks replied.

She had mastered the Allay Draught after a couple weeks, but the Wolfsbane potion was still giving them a little fight. They had improved, but the final concoction was still too unstable to be drinkable. 

“You...were planning to give me this even before we started dating? When you thought I was going out with Dorcas?”

“Eh...yeah, that was the plan; but since you decided to date  _ me _ instead, things got much easier…”

“Dora...I should really kiss you right now…”

“As alluring as that is, you’re too much in pain to do such a thing, so stay there. I’ll give you some drops of this…” 

The potion tasted very bland, but Lupin could feel its effect almost immediately. His muscles relaxed and the pain seemed to become fainter; there was a comforting warmth spreading through each fiber of his strained body.

“I took the other two vials to Madam Pomfrey. She seemed quite surprised that I knew, but she didn’t ask many questions. She seemed pleased with the potions, so I suppose she’ll give them to you tomorrow when you go to her in the morning.

“I don’t know what I did to deserve you, Dora…”

“Don’t be stupid...now hush and take a nap...will you? There still some hours before you have to sneak back to Gryffindor. I’ll wake you up...”

“I don’t feel like sleeping yet…”he caressing her hand.

“You need to sleep. I don’t think your Marauder friends will let you catch sleep tonight…”

“About that…”he said looking up at her “Are you coming tonight?”

“Maybe for a little bit. I don’t want to mess up with your boys night…”she chuckled “is it okay if I come? I haven’t seen Mr.Wolfie in a while…”

“Believe me...he misses you…” Lupin sighed caressing her face “I don’t know if I should be worried about that…”

“You worry too much, Remus. You’ll get gray hairs before you hit 30...though gray might actually look good on you…”

“Dora…”

“It’ll be alright; it’s probably your influence on him. That’s all. Either way, I want to go. It’d be the first time Mr. Wolfie meets his new animal friends and I want to make sure they get along…”

“Alright, but promise me something…”

“Aww...I won’t treat Mr. Wolfie as my pet dog and baby talk him, I promise…”

“That’s...not what I was going to say, but now that you mention it…”

“Haha, I know what you were going to say. Just relax, Remus. I know everything will be alright.”

***

 

Tonks had sneaked out from Hufflepuff house a little later than she’d planned to and feeling a little groggy. She’d been feeling well, but suddenly, she’d had a very small fit of nausea and a mild headache. It took about half an hour for the sudden pain to subdue and allow her to get up in wobbly legs, and 15 minutes more before she felt confident that she could sneak out without falling flat on her face. 

The hit of fresh air scented with grass and some light fog made her feel relieved as she made her way to her usual spot. The moon was amazingly brilliant that night and the stars looked wonderful. She’d been staring at the sky when a the crack of a branch made her turn her head. The wolf ran too  her like a dog that had not seen his owner in a long time; he wagged his tail and nudged her with his nose as she laughed. She could almost picture Lupins embarrassed look as he rolled his eyes at the silly expression of canine love. 

“Hey….seems like someone has missed me…” she giggled “I’m sorry. My health hasn’t been the best lately, but look what I brought you. I made a stop by the kitchens and they gave me some of the leftover meatballs from dinner…”

Tonks couldn’t help but think that anyone who saw Lupin right now, would never think a werewolf could be dangerous. The wolf was practically acting like a dog with her and she giggled thinking of how much she’d tease Lupin tomorrow. It was then when she heard another shift from the forest and she raised her head to see another three animals peeking out from the shadows. Lupin had not told her who was who, thinking that she’d be entertained with the task of trying to guess who was who. 

Peter was the easiest to guess. She knew the boy had always favoured rodents; the two remaining ones: a large, shaggy  black dog and a solemn stag could only be Sirius and James.

“Oh, look at that…” Tonks chuckled “Friends of yours?”

The wolf’s amber eyes glowed a little when his head turned to the new arrived group of animals. 

“That’s good…” she laughed patting his head “Wolfs are supposed to be social. Not sure I’ve ever heard of wolves befriending stags or rats, though. I thought they were supposed to be their meal…” 

The wolf turned his head at her with an expression that Tonks thought that - if it had been his human form- would have been a mix of horror and scorn. 

“Alright, alright...sorry…” she laughed “ You’re free to choose your pack, Wolfie.” 

Tonks turned to the animals and smiled brightly.

“Come here...I’ve got some food if you want to eat it. Not sure what stags actually eat though, but I’m sure it isn’t meatballs. I do have fruits candies though…”

At the mention of food the three didn’t hesitate to come to her and she happily shared the food she’d brought between them with a smile. Even as animals, those boys couldn’t stay away from food. 

“You remind me of some people I know. I bet you’re a bunch of troublemakers that are up to no good..” she chuckled.

The black shaggy dog winked at her and she smiled. That was definitely SIrius, and if she looked closer at the stag, she could see some lighter colored rings around its eyes that awfully reminded her of James’s glasses. 

“Well, it’s not fair that only you have a name, Mr. Wolfie...shouldn’t we name these three, too…?”

Tonks was trying to come up with the puniest and silliest names she could think of, but after a few seconds of brainstorming she chose three of the randomest names she had thought. 

“Alright, you’ll be Mr. Snuffles…” she said scratching Sirius head and Sirius put his paw over her arm “Oh, well...look at that. Isn’t he one friendly pup?”

Sirius replied with a bark and the wolf squeezed against her side glaring at the dog posessively. 

“Oh, Mr. Wolfie...no need to be so rude. You’re still my favorite canine, don’t worry. “ she laughed patting the wolf “Now...you...Mmmm I think Sir Staggerd suits you. Yes, sir Staggerd it is…” she added looking at James “and you, little one...Mr. Squeaker sounds good, right?”

None of the animals replied, but Tonks knew better than to expect one. 

“Well, now you three have some dignified names and titles. Your names are better than mine, believe me. For all you care, I am Tonks…” she grinning “And yes, I must be crazy for talking with animals...but hey, craziness makes life a little better.”

Tonks got up and rested her hands on her hips. Suddenly a wave of nausea hit her and she had to do a bit of effort to hide it.

“Now, it was a pleasure to meet you all, but I think.I should get back…” she said softly and the wolf looked at her inquisitive and she smiled apologetically as she leaned to scratch his ears “Sorry. I’m not feeling that good to join you on your stroll, but you’re in good company anyway; you don’t need me…”

Tonks stood back up and smiled at the four animals. She gave them a small wave and then turned around and headed to the castle begging that the motion sickness stood away. She couldn’t understand why, if she had been fine earlier, she was starting to feel ill again. The malaise was growing fast and she knew that she’ll never make it to Hufflepuff, so instead she went to the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey was her sleep gown when she opened the door; the woman’s stern eyes widened in surprise when she saw her standing at the door. The mediwitch’s lips pursed in concern and without questions, she led her to one of the beds. 

  
  


The next morning, Tonks woke up feeling someone brushing her hair with gentle strokes. She was pleased that the sensation of nausea and dizziness seemed to have gone away during her sleep, but all she felt now was an empty sensation of exhaustition. She turned her head on the pillow and found Lupin sitting at the edge of the bed stroking her ash blonde hair with a worried look.

“Wotcher…” she smiled at him “You look well…”

“Your potions work wonderfully…” he said quietly “Madam Pomfrey seemed very pleased.”

“ That’s good..” Tonks replied pushing herself into a sitting position. 

Her motion was slow and carefully. She wasn’t sure if the dizziness would return with any sudden movements, but she was thrilled to find that it seemed to have gone away. Lupin moved to her side and helped her sit in a comfortable position.

“Thank you...a gent as always…” 

“Why didn’t you tell me you were feeling ill?” 

“ To be honest, I wasn’t feeling ill at first. It came out of sudden, a little before I left you...” Tonks told him resting her head on his shoulder “It wasn’t too bad, but didn’t think I could make it to my dorm, so I came here instead. I didn’t think Madam Pomfrey would deny me a bed...”

“Madam Pomfrey said you had a fever again. It wasn’t as bad as the past ones, but pretty high nevertheless...” Lupin sighed.

“ I did ? But it’s gone now…” she smiled at him “So no need to worry.”

“Dora…”

“ Really, I am feeling great today!”

“Are you sure?”

“Look at me. Do I look like I’m lying to you?”

Lupin had to admit that she was looking much better, but he wasn’t entirely convinced. She hadn’t looked bad the day before when they’d spent the morning in the library. He still didn’t understand what disease was affecting Tonks. After learning about the Ghost Illnesses from Snape, he’d began researching on them, but there wasn’t much to say about the topic and he had no idea of what else it could be.

“Let’s not talk about me. How was it last night?”

“It was good. With did some exploring through the forest. We found a beautiful pond in there. Someday I’d like to take you there…”

“Isn’t the forest forbidden? I doubt Dumbledore will appreciate that you take me there on a date…”

“We won’t be students forever, Dora…”

“Fair enough. You had fun, that’s what’s important.” she said tapping his nose “I told you. You’re not a monster, just a lonely wolf that needed some love…”

The boy smiled. He sharpened his hearing making sure that nobody was around before leaning to press a kiss on Tonks’s lips and t he girl returned the gesture with delight.  

 

_ More than a little love...I think what I needed was you. _

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lupin deserves love and I love this ship...  
> Hope you enjoyed it!


	24. Another day, another smile

"It was the kind of kiss that made

me know that I was never so happy in my whole life." 

—  [ **Stephen Chbosky** ](https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/12898.Stephen_Chbosky)

 

When he was just a boy , the idea of kissing a girl sounded like the worst possible thing in the world; like many other boys, he thought that the simple touch of a girl could make his skin fill up with boils, quite a ridiculous thought he admitted; as he grew older, the idea of a kiss became fair less unpleasant, an he began considering the member of the other gender with less dislike, but by the time, his thoughts regarding human contact - more precisely kissing- were  replaced by the idea that it was something unattainable form him since there would never be someone that could really love him while knowing what he was. He had resigned himself to be forever a loner by the time he had entered the young age of 11 years old, but then Tonks had crashed into his life like a hurricane and showed him that love didn’t discriminate as much as he had thought.

Tonks was probably the best thing that could have ever fallen in his path. The girl would use any little opportunity to remind him that she was there and that one way or another, she loved him werewolf or not. It could be by a simple gesture as lacing their fingers under the table when  Sirius and James were too busy fooling around to take notice , or a quick peck when no one was looking. Some other times, her gestures were a lot more things that, to anyone else, could mean little, but to him it meant the world, like when she secretly slipped chocolates into his pocket on the mornings after a the full moon, or when she dropped by to  give him vials of pain relieving potions that she’d brewed just for him. Tonks not only accepted him as a werewolf, she was willing to be by his side and do whatever she could to make it a little better and it was something that Lupin wasn’t that used to too. It wasn’t like the support he received from the other three Marauders who, like her were always very accepting and willing to support him.

As time passed, it became harder for him to keep their little relationship secret, especially when all he wanted to do whenever he saw her was pull her into his arms. He knew he was being stupid, but his mother had noted that people in love usually were.  Their parents were the only people they had agreed to tell, after all, being parents it’d would have been a matter of time before they found out. To their surprise, both parties seemed pleased with the news and Lupin earned himself another surprise by finding out that the Tonks had know of his lycanthropy long before their daughter did.  The boy had received a letter from Ted Tonks in which the man expressed - in a rather comical way -that it was his duty as a father to give him the usual father to boyfriend to lecture, but that he was afraid that his daughter would be more a danger to him that he could be to her, so he had simply wrote a note saying:  _ I should be concerned about a small furry detail, but to be fair that’s not quite the least of my worries. You should know,she’s too much like her mother sometimes: stubborn and considerate. She’ll be a handful to handle trust me, so all I’m going to say is  I wish you luck and my best wishes.  _ The note was followed by a side note done by Andromeda in which she clarified that her husband was being a fool.

Lupin had laughed at that simple letter. He had folded it and tucked it inside his favorite book and hid it deep inside his truck just in case that Sirius decided to mess around with his things. The note was more a joke than anything else, but having the Tonks approval and seeing the way they didn’t seem to mind that their daughter had chosen to date a monster, made him feel almost normal. 

“Moony is mooning…” James said poking his nose with a the fluffy end of a grass  flower in a way that made him want to sneeze “hello….anyone in there?”

“Agg...stop that, you’ll make me sneeze…” Lupin groaned glaring at James who broke into laughs.

“Not my fault that I had to use unorthodox methods to get your attention, mate…” 

“Hah...I said we should have just yelled Tonksie’s name, but I was outvoted” Sirius smirked.

“Pads, she’s like next door…” Wormtail  snickered “She’d have heard you…”

“That was the idea…” 

“Wait...what?”

“Oh come on, Moony. You really haven’t been paying attention to us, have you?” James said faking hurt.

“Tonks and Snape are over there. It seems they’re trying to catch something, but Tonks isn’t doing too good to Snape’s standards…” Peter laughed “She seems to be having fun…”

Lupin looked at the direction his friends pointed at. Snape and Tonks were too far to notice them, but from the quartets vantage point they had a clear view of the two students running around a patch of tall grass while Slughorn sat  on a rock writing down something in a parchment while he counted vials inside his wooden case. Tonks seemed to be enjoying the exercise as she launched herself into the grass and disappeared from view just to reappear in a different spot a few seconds later. Snape didn’t look as thrilled, the boy was pinching the bridge of his nose in an obvious gesture of annoyance.

“I wonder what they’re trying to catch…” Sirius asked looking amused.

As if to answer Sirius question, a large rabbit like creature jumped up from the over the grown grass using Tonks head as a lift. It was mousy colored with antlers and two flapping wings that it used to plain over Snape’s head. 

“What the bloody hell is that thing?” James said with wide eyes.

The group turned to Lupin expecting an answer. THe boy was usually the one to know and Lupin sighed trying to match the thing they’d see with any creature he’d seen in books. 

“Maybe...it is a Wolpertinger…” he said unsure “My dad saw one in Bavaria during one of his trips, but I’ve never seen one myself…”

“A wolver what…?”

“It’s a magical creature…” Lupin said “It must be noted somewhere in Scamander’s books….”

“And why are they trying to catch it?” Peter asked.

“Well, it’s Slughorn...so I bet it has to be something good for potions…”

Their talk was interrupted by a loud scream followed by a fit of giggles as Tonks had managed to catch the hopping creature, but despite its small size, the animal had to be far stronger than they’d thought since it was now dragging the Hufflepuff girl precariously around through the grass.

“SEVERUS DO SOMETHING…” she cried out half horrified and half laughing.

“What do you want me to do? It’s not like I can spell it if you’re hanging from it!” the boy replied annoyed. 

“Now I know why you didn’t take Care of Magical Creatures...oi…stop already you fr ball!”

“You are having fun anyway….”

“Ahah...Madam Pomfrey is going to elate when I come around with these beautiful scratches…” she laughed.

“ _ Impedimenta” _

As soon as the spell had left Snape’s wand the creature slowed down allowing Tonks to push it into a wooden cage. 

“Well...you could have done that earlier, mind you…” she gasped and Snape shrugged.

“AH...Bravo. Very well done Ms. Tonks and Mr. Snape. Now we can take the creature to professor Kettleburn…”

Tonks raised her arm and looked miserably at her torned sleeve.

“Ah...my mum is going to kill me…”

“Can’t you fix it with a spell?” Snape asked with a frown. 

“Can I ?I’ve never been good at domestic spells….”

“Ah, don’t worry Ms. Tonks. I’m sure one of the house elves will be delighted to sew that for you…” Slughorn saird patting her shoulders.

“That doesn’t change the fact that she’s going to kill me. Uhgg...I can almost hear her... _ Nymphadora Tonks, you are thirteen for Merlin’s name. You can’t go around tearing your clothes like a 4 years old….” _

“Ah, indeed...that does sound like something Andromeda Black would say…” Slughorn nodded.

“It’s Tonks now sir. Don’t use her maiden name unless you want to be hexed…” Tonks laughed.

“So that’s where that came from...”

“What?”

“Nothing…”

“Severus….what did you say…”

“Not your business…”

“Hey!”

“Alright children. You’ve done wonderfully today.  How about some tea and biscuits in my office? I think you two have earned it…”

 

The Marauders watched them walk back to the castle; Tonks seemed to be trying to pester Snape into telling her whatever he had said earlier, but the black haired Slytherin was doing an amazing job ignoring her. 

“And there they go…” James said  whistling “I’m not sure how’s that Snivellus hasn’t cursed her yet. I would have imagined him to be the sort of slytherin to do so…”

“Not even Snivellus can get over Tonksie’s charm...ask Moony about it?”

“Why me?”

“Right because she’s got you bad, mate…” James laughed.

Lupin didn’t even bother to refute that, since doing so would be lying. Instead he got on his feet and crossed his arms as he stared at his friends with quirked eyebrow. 

“Alright...forget that.  We’ve got more pressing matters to discuss…”

“Define pressing…”

“Gentlemen...I’ve got this beauties here…” Sirius said with an overdramatic aristocratic gesture as he slipped out a box from his pocket “Freshly new product form Zonko...pyrotechnic water proof dungbombs ….”

“Oh hoi…” James said with a mischievous smile “What do you have in mind, Pads?”

“Ehehehe…”

Lupin let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. Whenever Sirius laughed like that, it was safe to say that a detention was on their way.  

Luckily for the Marauders, Lupin was good at planning and he oversaw every little hole in Sirius “magnificent” plan, so when the bombs exploded in the griffin fountain, from the Courtyard, sending colorful sparks and a horrid stench in all directions while scaring the hell out of a group of second years that had been gossiping in the near area, the mischievous quartet had been watching in a safe distance. Filch had come in furious, demanding to know who was the disgusting rascal who had caused such a thing. When cellador found the empty caskets of the dungbombs, he’d pretty much figured out who the culprits were, but without real proof there was little he could but sulk.

“What would we do without you Moony?” James laughed as they ran down the corridor before Filch saw them “That was awesome, we need to get more of those…”

“What do reckon would happen if we drop those in the lake?” Sirius laughed.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking Pads…?”

“Oh, you can’t be seriously considering…?”

“Throwing bombs into the lake...hah, mate...I’ve never been more into an idea like…”

Sirius stopped on his tracks and stared ahead with a frown; which earned him  the puzzled looks from his companions. The boy’s lips curled into a grin.

“Hey Tonksie!”

“Ah, wotcher Sirius and company…” Tonks greeted them. The girl was crouched on the ground picking  up parchments.

“You dropped those?”

“No….I just happened to stumble with a large collection parchment that was randomly laying around…” Tonks replied sarcastically as she rolled her eyes “Of course I dropped them; but maybe I wouldn’t have if I hadn’t been startle by that bloody explosion that I suspect was your doing…”

“Why would it be my doing?” Sirius replied feigning innocence.

“Oh...you’re not fooling me…” Tonks said rolling her eyes “Thank you, Remus…”

The girl smiled at him as he passed her the pile of parchments he had just picked up.  Tonks put them back into the wooden box scanned around to make sure she hadn’t missed any.

“What are all those?” James asked curiously.

“Ah...we were helping Slughorn clean his storage room. This are some old potion recipes we found. Since I am taking Healing Draughts and Alchemy he said I could take a look on them…”

“Wow...you’re taking Potions pretty seriously…” Peter said impressed “ Planning to become a potioner?”

“Nah...that’s Severus’s field not mine. I’m more into practical usefulness…” Tonks shrugged “but healing draughts are always useful and unfortunately very difficult or expensive. Learning how to make them should be useful at some point…”

“So...healer?” James suggested.

“Wrong again…” Tonks chuckled. 

“That looks heavy…” Lupin said when she leaned to pick the box “Let me help you with that…”

“There you go, Moony, the gentleman…” Sirius smirked “Don’t you think he’s such a fanciable bloke, cous?”

“Oh, he is. If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have that parade of young ladies running behind him, would he? Though, I’m sure he’s offering me his help out of worry that I’ll get myself hurt, or even worse...hurt somebody else in the process. Am I right?” 

Tonks gave him a playful wink.

“Seems like I was discovered…” he replied with the same playful tone. 

“There you have it…” 

“Just out of curiosity, cous…” Sirius said with a smirk “Aren’t you going to do something about that parade of young ladies after Moony?”   
“Do something you say? Like what?”

“Like joining?” James laughed and Lupin rolled his eyes.

“I haven’t considered that…” Tonks said thoughtful; she then turned to Lupin and winking at him, added “So...do I get any spoil from joining the fan club?”

“I am afraid I have no control over them. You would have to asked the person who funded it…”

“Ah…then I’ll probably pass, or even better, I might make my own club.”

“You’ll make your own? So Moony is getting to fan clubs? That’s interesting…” Sirius grinned.

“Sure, you can join if you want. I’ll call it MRPACHG….”

“What the bloody hell?” James frowned.

“Movement of Remus Protection Against Crazy Hormonal Girls…” TOnks smiled “How’s that?”

Lupin snorted and Sirius covered his face with his hand. Sirius disappointed that his attempt to hook up his little cousin and his friend seemed to have failed.

“Anyway...I want to read this in the library. Mind to escort me there to ensure I won’t endanger any innocent?”she smiled at Lupin.

“I’ll be delighted…”

“Right, you two go. I don’t feel like studying in my free time. Actually I am hungry so we’ll get something to eat.” Sirius sighed “See you in the tower, Moony.”

Sirius put a hand over his friend’s shoulder and muttered  a “ _ Take the chance, mate. Ask her out!”  _  in a barely audible voice, James patted his back and winked as he pulled Peter away.  Lupin let out a sigh and chuckled shaking his head as his friends walked away and disappeared down a set of stairs. 

“It seems I’m winning the bet so far, Remus.”  Tonks said playfully “What did Sirius tell you?”

“That I should take this chance to ask you out…” 

“Ask me out, eh? How long has he been drilling ideas into your head?” 

Tonks hooked her arm around his and the two walked heading to the library. 

“Since last year…” Lupin laughed.

“Mmm...so he’s playing cupid, huh? He’s going to be disappointed that Severus beat him to that…” 

“Who would have thought he’d do it, though.”

“Ah...he was hoping that fixing us up would take me off his back. He was sadly disappointed when it didn’t…”

“You’re still taking some extra potions lessons with him then?”

“More than taking, pestering him. At this rate, I’ll get and O  in potions this year though.”

“ And what about all this…?” he asked gesturing to the parchment.

“It’s just what I said it was…”she shrugged.

They reached the library. The study hall was pretty much filled up with students that hoped to finish all their homework before the weekend. Tonks scanned the room, but instead of taking a table, she decided to head into her favorite spot isolated from the rest of the student body.

“Don’t look...one of you fan girls is looking this way and hoping that you would go sit in her table…”

“One of my…”

“Aha, Ravenclaw...my year. Not that bad looking and probably brainy as you…wouldn’t be a bad match...”

“Dora, are you seriously saying that?”

Tonks giggled. When they turned into an empty corridor, she looked around to see if anyone was looking. Once she was sure, it was only them, she did a quick turn and gave him a quick peck. 

“I take that as a no…”

“It’s a big kissy no…” she added kissing him again “just to be sure…”

They reached the Muggle Literature section which was -as usual- deserted. Lupin set the box on the table and the girl gave a thank you kiss in his cheek before starting to rummage into the contents of the box.  

“Considering what Sirius said…” 

“Yes?”

“Would you go out with me?”

Tonks stopped her task and turned to him with a puzzled look that Lupin found amazingly adorable. 

“What?”

“I don’t think we have had a proper date since we started dating. That’s kind of ironic…”

“Oh, well. We can’t go around snogging each other when we are trying to be discreet, can we? But a date isn’t a bad idea…” she smiled “but how are you planning to get rid of Sirius and the rest? You’re not telling them that we are going out, are you? That’s cheating…”

“I won’t, but I think...I have an idea…” 

“You always have an idea, Remus. You’re not the brain of the quartet for nothing…” 

“Saturday morning. Sirius, James and Peter always sleep in. We can meet up early and I’ll take to a place we discovered the other day. If they ask….I’ll just say I was giving you some DADA tutoring...”

“Very clever…” Tonks nodded “That’s why I like you…”

Tonks began sorting through the many parchments and piled them by categories. 

“Are all healing draughts?” 

“Yes, I think Severus took some for his own collection, but we usually do some cross references so it should be alright. This pike over here are for injury treatment; this for pain relief….this are for energy and vitality…”

“They look quite complicated…” Lupin said picking one of the parchments and reading its contents.

“I forgot you’re not good at potions...Is it strange that I can’t believe that?”

Lupin smiled and shrugged.

“One can’t be good at everything…”

“I’m horrible in History, and I could use some improvement in DADA…” Tonks sighed “I’ll have to get better at it if I’m aiming to be an auror…”

Lupin’s hand stopped and he turned to his girlfriend in surprise.

“Auror?”

“Yes…” she replied absently “Transfigurations, Charms, Potions and DADA are mandatory for auror training. I should get at least an EE in all of their O.W.L.s…”

“I thought you would aim to be a HealPotioner as your mum, considering the signatures you’ve been taking…”

“The thought crossed my mind, but….I think being an auror is my call…”

“It’s...a dangerous job…”

“I know, but it’s a job that might help many people…” Tonks smiled at him “And other creatures…”

  
  
  
  


***

On Saturday morning, Tonks was challenged with the tough decision of deciding what to wear. She’d never bothered too much about her appearance, but now that she had- and it sounded so strange to say it - a boyfriend, her more feminine side seemed to had awaken. That would certainly please her mother, but she’d would let her mother celebrate it at some other time. Right now,  the girl was having a hard time trying to decide what look she’d go for. After changing hairstyles and colors for at least 50 times, she ended up choosing a wavy , shoulder length style that began in a lavender color and ended in a bubble pink on the tips. The girl took a look of herself in front of the mirror and nodded before hiding her hair under the hood. 

Maybe she was being a little too ridiculous, she thought, Remus and her were already together and he didn’t mind how she looked. She could show up wearing a pig snout or a cat face that, he’d just laugh and say she was too adorable; but there she was, double checking herself to make sure she looked “pretty”. Being as silent as she could, Tonks sneaked out of her dormitory and made her way to the  castle grounds, but making a stop by the kitchens to ask the house elves if they could provide her with some food for a picnic. The elves had been more than delighted to obliged and ten minutes later, she was walking out of the castle with a small basket of sandwiches and tarts. 

“Wotcher, Remus…” 

Lupin smiled at her when she reached the castle entrance. His smile was always gentle  and warm and Tonks saw that maybe she hadn’t been the only one who was concerned about looking good that morning.

“Mmm...very handsome. We should go before Dorcas and the rest of your admirers see you…” she giggled.

“You look prettier than usual, if that’s even possible, and I’m wondering what surprised is hiding under the hood today.”

“I’m afraid you won’t know until we are out of the public eye…” she giggled “Got us some food, so you lead and I’ll follow…”

Lupin smiled. He grabbed her hand and led her down the trail to Hagrid’s hut. She was glad that the boy was grabbing her arm as they walked down the rocky stairs, because she was sure that if it had been on her own, she would have tripped already.

“Where’s this place you were talking about?”

“There’s the detail…” Lupin said with an apologetic smile “I am afraid that...we might be breaking a few rules while we get there…”

“Mmm...Remus Lupin breaking the rules to hang out with a girl, shame of you…” she said in a very McGonagall like tone “Maybe I should morph into her to make it more realistic.”

“I’d prefer not. I like McGonagall but I wouldn’t want to be seen holding hands with her…”

“Oh, yes...that’d be highly inappropriate….” Tonks laughed  “so why do you say we’ll be breaking the rules?”

“Because we’ll be very close to the Forbidden Forest…”

“Ah...well, now that’s what I call and exciting date…”

They didn’t have to cross the forest to get there, but they did have to walk through a small bit of forest before Lupin told her they had reached their destination. Tonks was charmed instantly. They had reached a small pond covered by  the thick treetops; the branches merged with each other creating a thick mantle that let, barely, a few sunrays pass. The light was reflected over the calm surface of the lake creating a beautiful show of sparkles; wild flowers grew around the edge of the pond. Tonks recognized some from her gatherings with Slughorn and some others from  the hours she’d spent playing around the forest back at her home.

“This...is amazing, Remus….”

“I know…” Lupin smiled “We found it the other night, after you left. Even the wolf was a little regretful that you hadn’t come…”

“Ah, Mr. Wolfie...always a sweetheart.Just like his human side…” she said standing on  tiptoes to kiss him. 

Lupin returned her the kiss while circling her waist with his arms. Both of them felt released by the fact that they could drop the leery act, since no one would see them in there.

“Mmm…”Lupin smile after pressing another kiss on her lips. When the girl pulled back he chuckled softly.

“What’s so funny?” she asked curiously.

“Everytime I kiss you, it just feels so right...and then I remember that there was a time that swore I’d never kiss a girl since they’d give me boils….”

Tonks snorted.

“Where you five by any chance?”

“Nope, four…”

“Well, I haven’t given you boils, have I?”

“Not even one…”

Tonks smiled brightly, then she scanned the area and choose a nice spot to seat. Once she’d settled she took of her hood revealing the colourful hair she’d chosen for the occasion.  The saw with pleasure that Lupin seemed to like it, his hand had automatically caught one of her locks and he was caressing it lovingly.

“So I take you liked my hair today?”

“Yes, it is perfect…” he smiled “now  I have another reason to remember you whenever I see Lilacs…”

“Lilacs?”

“That’s kind of..your redolence. It is quite unique…” he smiled “ and with the risk of sounding a little stalker, I think I’d recognize you by your scent anywhere…”

“Oh, you and your wolfish little perks…” she said resting her chin on his shoulder “wait...that time when you found  me in the forest after Boreas had petrified me….”

“Yes, it might sound weird, but I did….track your scent to find you…” Lupin replied a little embarrassed.

“Oh, well now that’s practical…” Tonks giggled “Which means I’ll never be able to to fool you with my morphs...unless I figure out a way to hide my so called scent. So besides an acute sense of smell, what other refined sense do you have?”

“Predatory senses, I suppose…”Lupin replied taking her hand “hearing and well...sight…” 

Talking about his more animalistic traits wasn’t something he usually did; mostly, he prefered to avoid the topic completely for fear of being judged. He hadn’t even told his friends that his human side was irreversibly affected by the wolf even out of the full moon, in part because saying it would mean h’d have to admit that one way or another he was a monster. To Tonks, who somehow knew him better than he’d ever expect, the fact that he was telling  _ her _ all those things so sincerely was a vote of confidence that she truly treasured.

“...but my senses are not that sensible unless I’m close to the full moon.”

“Makes sense…”Tonks nodded . She , then, hugged him by his shoulders and kissed his cheek “Hungry? One of the best parts of being in Hufflepuff...is that we have free access to kitchens…”

“Is it?”

“Well, not entirely true...but our house is pretty close to the kitchen so getting food isn’t that hard and, to be fair, this place is just perfect for a picnic…”

Tonks smiled at her boyfriend and she saw the boy return her another lovingly smile. Lupin was a boy that had grown surrounded by the love of his parents and later by the esteem of his friends, but there was always a hint of sadness and fear in his smiles. SOmething that Tonks had recognized as the fear to lose it all after a full moon. She made a decision that day by the small pond, that she would make sure to erase that sadness from his smile someday.


	25. A friendly hand comes from where you less expect it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long chapter I think. I won't be updating in a while since I'll be going on a trip this Saturday, but I'll try to post at least three chapters this week.  
> ALso, I've started an "art collection" for this fic lol.  
> It's basically me making some silly fanart inspired on it. if you want to chek it, I'm publishing them in my tumbler under the tag Acrinkleoffate  
> Here I leave you the URL: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/afaithy

"As for omens, there is no such thing as an omen. Destiny does not send us heralds. She is too wise or too cruel for that."    
— Oscar Wilde

 

The first time Tonks said that she had a  bad feeling , her father had told her she was too young to be having bad feelings, but the next day a boy of her age was found dead on the road. Muggles said it’d been wild dogs; wizards blamed it on werewolves, but her parents new better. That they they emptied their flat and moved as far as they could from that little town.

That’s how Tonks had learned that when something seemed to be going very well, it was a matter of time when something would come and pop her little bubble of joy. Her ominous messenger was dressed in the concerned smile of Professor Sprout as she knocked at the door of Charms and politely requested to take Tonks with her.

The girl saw the wave of curiosity and the gossips that were bound to be released as soon as she stepped out of the class; but taking her mother’s air of dignity, she stood up and walked out of the class behind her head of house.

At first she thought professor Sprout would tell her something. The small woman had opened her mouth, but closed it as she found no words to say, and rubbed the girl’s back instead.  Not a good sign, Tonks thought as Sprout led her into Professor McGonagall’s office.

“Minerva, I brought Tonks….” 

“Thank you , Pomona. Please, take seat, Ms. Tonks…”

Tonks sat down slightly confused. She watched the Sprout pour her a cup of tea as McGonagall offered her a plate of sugar biscuits.The whole situation felt a little off.

“Eh….professor. Is...something wrong?” she asked as she received the cup of tea.

“My apologies, Ms. Tonks.” McGonagall said quietly “ I suppose we should be straight with this…”

Now that sounded bad. Tonks tried to think if she had done anything she shouldn’t recently and beside sneaking into a part of the forest with Lupin for a little date, she couldn’t remember anything. Since Lupin wasn’t in the room, she could guess that the date wasn’t the cause of her mysterious summoning.

“There was an attack...in London. It was led by a group of wizards that call themselves Death Eaters...”

At the mention of London, Tonks felt a small pinch of concern and the familiar sensation that alerted her that what was coming next was something she didn’t want to hear.

“The victims...were muggleborns. Your father…”

“My dad?” Tonks said horrified dropping her cup. The cup fell and broke into several pieces, but none of the witches seemed to care “What happened to my dad?”

“Honey, listen...you need to calm down…”

“No, I don’t….What I need is to know...if my dad is alright. Why was he in London? He rarely goes to London!”

“Your father was in the area attending...work related business…” McGonagall replied “He was in the area during the attack, but I am that his whereabouts are currently unknown. Ministry is working to find them…”

“My dad...is missing?No, that can’t be…” Tonks said looking from one teacher to the other “My dad can’t….he must be back at home with mum. This is a mistake…”

“Oh, honey. I wish it was...but Alastor Moody was the one to inform Dumbledore earlier. I think you know him, right?”

“No...no...it can’t be. Not my dad...maybe he was wrong…”

“Ms. Tonks…”.

“My mum...she….”

“Professor Dumbledore  went to see her. She’s….affected, of course. Which is why we are the one to give you the news...”

Tonks was shocked and her hands began to tremble. 

“The Ministry is tracking him. Alastor Moody has taken the case personally…”

“Listen, honey. Your father is only missing, we don’t really know anything so...there might be a chance that he is alright…” Professor Sprout said rubbing her back.

“Why…?”

“Ms. Tonks…?”

“Why did they attack? Was my dad their target?”

“Their reasons are unknown, at least to us, but it is safe to assume that no. Your father wasn’t the target…”

“Was ...was my aunt in the attack?”

McGonagall and Sprout exchanged looks. The worried eyes told Tonks that both teacher had heard the story of encounter with Bellatrix during the summer. 

“Witnesses think they saw her…”  McGonagall said softly.

“I… I  want to talk to my mum….” she said feeling her eyes burn.

“Of course, honey.” Professor Sprout whispered softly “Of course…”

  
  
  


However, talking to her mother only made her feel  a lot more miserable. Andromeda was in an emotional turmoil that was foreign image to her daughter. Tonks had never seen her mother in other way than that stern witch with aristocratic and dignified air and she had never picture her mother in such a vulnerable position. Like many other children, Tonks had always thought of her parents as a constant variable in her life, almost in a everlasting way.  Seeing her mother break into tears because of anguish about the uncertainty of her father’s fate shattered that image in her and made her remember that her parents were human, and like any other human, they were fragile. 

By the time she had left McGonagall’s office - after  2 hours of trying to sooth her mother and reassuring the two teachers that she was alright- she’d been holding her tears so fiercely that her eyes were bloodshot, swollen and burning. She managed to morph most of it away, before anyone could notice, but still some of the traces of her emotional state were visible in her heart shaped face. She was already late to her usual meet up with Snape in their little Potioner covent in the Room of Requirement, and she hoped that Snape wouldn’t be too mad at her since she wasn’t sure if she would be able to take his scold without breaking into an irrational fit of sobs.

“You’re late….” Snape said without lifting his head from the book he had been scribbling in and the girl dropped herself in the seat across him “I was about to start without…”

Snape’s words died in his lips when he saw  her. Tonks could feel his inquiring eyes looking at her carefully and she was glad that she had morphed her face into something more presentable.

“Sorry...got...caught in some things…” she said.

“...” 

Snape put down the book and looked at her with an arched eyebrow. It was the kind of look that a teacher would give an student who had come to give an excuse for failing to hand in homework: demanding, a little intimidating and skeptical.

“What happened?”

“Why do you assume something happened? No...everything is alright..brilliant...”

Her voice had broken a little in the middle of the sentence and maybe she’d sounded a little too happy, even for her. SHe could tell, by Snape’s look, that he wasn’t buying it.

“Nymphadora...do you really pretend that I let you be infront of cauldron when you’re obviously emotionally unstable….”

“I’m perfectly fine… I swear…”

“Do you remember rule number one in potion brewing?”

“Focus must be 100%...no distractions...no hesitations…”

“Correct...you…” Snape said pointing at her with a stern look “You obviously are not in disposition to be focused.”

Tonks bit her lip. Maybe her morphing had dropped or maybe the combination of emotional turmoil and her usual tiredness had played a toll on her abilities. That was the only reason she could think for Snape seeing something was wrong with her.

“Sorry...I…”

“Was it Lupin again?”

“What? No! Remus has nothing to do…”

“Then one of his fool friends…or admirers?”

“No, no…”

“...Nymphadora…”

 

Maybe it was the way he said her name in such a professor-y way or the fact that her emotional control was pretty much reaching its cutting point, but she exploded into a sea tears and sobs that, if she hadn’t been so terribly hurt and anguished, she might have found Snape’s sudden horrified face quite amusing. 

It was obvious that the boy wasn’t used to deal with girls that broke into tears out of sudden, and his demanding from earlier wasn’t meant to make her cry. She wanted to tell him that it had nothing to do with him, but all she could do was growl out an incomprehensible sob.

Without knowing what else to do, Snape resigned to give her a few soothing pats in her back and allowed her to cry while telling her that everything would be alright. He really wasn’t good at dealing with this sort of situations and he considered his options. Lily was probably a good option, but she was out with her friends that afternoon and he didn’t want to interrupt her. Tonks’s cousin, was his second option, he was her family and usually family was the best support in this kind of situations, but Sirius Black could be a real dimwit and James Potter and Peter Pettigrew weren’t too far behind. The decision was pretty obvious then, Lupin. He was her boyfriend, wasn’t he? 

“Wait here...I’ll be right back…”

“Where….?”

“Just ...stay here….I mean it…”

Snape left the room leaving a sobbing and pretty much confused Tonks behind. Finding Lupin shouldn’t be too difficult and even if he didn’t know where to search he could always  use a locating spell. The spell wasn’t necessary though, he found the quartet making their way to the Great Hall.

“Oi...Snivellus!” Sirius grinned “What’s up, mate?

“Not now, Black….” Snape said impatiently “Lupin… I need word with you. Come with me….”

“What? Me?” Lupin replied surprised.

“That’s what I said, didn’t I? Move…”

“Eh...sure? I’ll see you later...I suppose…”

Sirius, James and Peter exchanged curious looks as the the two boys walked down the corridor and disappeared down some stairs.

“You don’t reckon Snivellus is going to ...eh duel Moony or something, do you?” James said with frown.

“And why on earth would Snivellus want to duel Moony?” Sirius barked.

“Oh, oh...could it be that Snivellus is fancying Tonks as well?” Peter suggested “And know they’re like….rivals or something?”

“What crazy things have you been reading Wormtail?” Sirius groaned “That’s ridiculous. There’s no way Snivellus fancies my cousin. I mean...he’s always irritated by her…”

“Well...isn’t like...annoyance a way to fancy someone?”James shrugged “I’m just saying mate!”

“Not a chance. My cousin fancies Moony anyway. I’m sure of that. Either way...I’ll have to talk to him. He can’t procrastinate anymore.”

Sirius shook his head and burst into the Great Hall. Snape didn’t fancy his cousin, there was no way that could happen. He’d have a serious talk with Lupin later.

In the meantime, Lupin sneezed as he followed Snape to the higher floors.  The boy had suddenly appeared, claimed that he needed a word with him, but he hadn’t said a single word since they’d left the vestibule. If that wasn’t a little unusual, Lupin didn’t know what it was. 

“Eh...Severus. Didn’t you say you...wanted to talk?”

“Your girlfriends had a breakdown. Honestly I didn’t know how I was supposed to handle that. You fix it…” Snape replied stopping in a spot opposite to the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy trying  to teach ballet to a group of trolls.

Lupin choked at Snape’s words.

“What? I don’t…”

“Don’t bother. LIke I haven’t seen you two sending those disgustingly mushy looks whenever you’re in the same geographical area. I’m not as dull as Black…”

Lupin snorted. Seemed like Tonks had nailed it by saying that Snape or Lily would most likely be the first ones to notice. He was starting to be resign to the fact that he’d lose that bet. 

“Wait...you said she had a breakdown? What happened?”

“If she would stop crying, perhaps I’d know; the only thing I could think of doing was bringing you here…”

“To the...tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy?”

Snapes rolled his eyes then mumbled something and to Lupin’s astonishment, a door appeared in front of the wall they’d been facing. Snape pushed the door open and Lupin followed behind. The first impression he got when he entered the place was that it resembled a mix between an apothecary and the potions class down in the dungeons. 

There were several cabinets and stalls filled with glass vials. One of the cabinets seemed to hold finished potions while the other probably contained different potion ingredients. 

The room smelled curious as well, not necessarily bad, but strange. He recognized a few scents while other seemed to be foreign. He could smells Tonks’s lilac perfume and he also smelt a fragrance that he recognized as the pain relieving potion that she’d been giving him every full moon.  Lupin realized that this was probably where TOnks and Snape had been working on their potion lesson without being discovered.

“There she is and she’s still crying.” 

Snape’s words pulled Lupin out from his thoughts. His attention turned to a table covered by books and parchments at the end of the room. He recognized the small figure that was precariously hunched over the table with her face hidden between her arms and her shoulders shaking with her sobs and , instinctively, he rushed to  her side.

“Dora? Dora...what happened?” he said kneeling in by her side. 

He noticed that her hair had turned into a dull  brown and when she raised her face to meet him, he felt his chest tighten. The last time he’d seen her cry like this was when her grandparents had died.

“R-Remus? What are you doing here? How did you enter?”

“I brought him here. How else?” Snape replied.

“...What happened to the no outsiders rule…?”

“Made an exception…”

“Just to make me...feel better? I’m flattered…” Tonks said trying to sound jovial and jokingly, but failing miserably.

“Don’t get too cocky. I’m doing it because you can’t brew potions in that pathetic state; and Lupin is bad enough in potions, so I don’t need to worry about him snooping around the room.”

Lupin rolled his eyes and ignored Snape’s insult. He’d come to learn that Snape’s favorite way to express concern and “affection” was through sharp words, with a few exceptions. His rudde words didn’t change the fact that he’d been worried - even scared- of Tonks’s emotional distress to the point to run off and bring Lupin - who would most likely know how to fix whatever problem she had - into their little secret lair. The Gryffindor was truly grateful.

“Dora...what’s wrong?” he said again trying to bring the girls attention back to the topic.

“I…I am sorry. I didn’t mean to breakdown like this, but...I was bottling it all up and then suddenly it just came out and I just couldn’t stop it and….I am sorry…”

“Shh….it’s alright. No one is mad about it...but I-we want to help.” he said rubbing her back soothingly.

Tonks looked at both boys miserably. I took Lupin several minutes calm her and finally she was in a better condition to speak, but she had to stop midstory  since her sobbing wasn’t letting her speak clearly again. By the time Snape had managed to concoct an emergency tranquilizing potion and passed Tonks a small cup of smoking liquid that she had taken gratefully and drank it in a gulp. Lupin had to admit that Snape’s abilities were impressively good to be able to concoct something in matter of 30 minutes.  None of the boys interrupted Tonks as she told them the little things she’d heard from McGonagall and her mother. Lupin had moved to sit in the bench with her and he kept rubbing her back in tranquilizing circles. 

Snape, by the other hand, had been pacing around the room with a frown in his face. 

“These things have been turning more and more common this days…” Snape said “I’ve heard things...in the Slytherin common room, but I thought it was pure rumour…”

“What sort of things?” Lupin asked.

“About these...Death Eaters….” Snape explained “It’s been a hot topic between a lot of Slytherins since the end of last year I think…”

“Death Eaters…” Lupin said with a frown.

“For what I’ve heard. There is some kind of dark wizard in the raising that has been….gaining followers. Many of the Slytherin students seem to be very interested. Their philosophy  against  _ mudbloods  _ is extremist...I’m not surprised that they would claim authorship of an attack as such. ”

Lupin squeezed Tonks’s shoulder in an attempt to comfort her when the girl gave another sob. He knew Tonks was very attached  to her parents and the sole idea of any of them being in danger and not knowing whether her dad was alive or not was sure a heavy burden for her. 

“Until there are no news, we have to have hope that he’s fine, Dora…”

“That’s what Dumbledore said…”Tonks sighed“but what if my aunt got him? My mum was terrified...I’ve never seen my mum so terrified. I just don’t understand...my dad my dad avoids London at all costs...why was he there in the first place?”

“McGonagall said he was doing something work related…”

“My dad is a local Magic archivist..and he only visits London every now and then to buy supplies  for his restorations. I went with him in summer, he had enough stock for four months of work…”

“Who knows, Dora. Maybe he needed something else...”he said pulling the girl against him.

Tonks let out a painful sob and began crying into his shoulder. Lupin let out a sigh and looked at Snape. The boy was lost in his own thoughts as he stirred a cauldron with more of the tranquilizing potion and poured the contents in small glass bottles.  None of the three students talked, each of them seemed to lost into their own thoughts.

  
  


***

“So...let me take see if I get this...my baby cous is gutted, and Snivellus decides that the person he should go for help is Moony and not  _ me _ ? Well ...now I’m seriously miffed…”

After giving Tonks another dose of Tranquilizing Potion, Snape had told Lupin that she’d probably feel sleepy in a while and Lupin agreed to take her back to Hufflepuff house.  When he returned to his own dorm, he was greeted by three curious Gryffindors that were looking at him expectantly and Lupin had revealed them the reason behind Snape’s actions.  Sirius wasn’t too happy that he had been left out of the loop when Tonks seemed to be involved, but Lupin knew the boy and even when he was annoyed, he wasn’t really mad about it.

“Between us Pads...You’re not exactly  _ good _ when it comes to dealing with crying girls…” James said chuckling “Snivellus was smart to fetch Moony...he’s the gent with the touch with the ladies.”

“I beg you pardon…” Lupin said with a frown “You make it sound as if I was some sort of ladies man, which I am not…”

“Not what I mean. You’re just better at being….nice and helping out…” James laughed “Besides, Pads...you’re the one who’s so into matching those two together...what better way for Moony here to catch Tonksie’s heart than being the knight in blinding armor to come a give her a shoulder to cry on and sooth her?”

Lupin had to make a big effort not to laugh since that was exactly what he’d been doing the whole time he’d been in the potion room. The only difference was that he hadn’t been doing it to catch Tonks’s heart.

“...Okay, only because of that...I’ll let it pass. Did it work though?” Sirius asked Lupin.

“...she was crying and troubled about her dad, Sirius….don’t you think that’s...anticlimactic? Besides...Severus was there, too…”  Lupin snorted. Not that Snape would have minded, he thought, probably he’d had expected Lupin to snog her and make her feel better.  He still couldn’t believe that Snape had figured out they were together and his three best friends were still out of the loop.

“Ah...damn Snivellus for being the third wheel there….” Sirius groaned “but hey, never heard of kiss and make it better…?”

“Sirius...please…..” Lupin said shaking his head “It’d have been very inconsiderate to use such trick.  She’s really troubled about the news of her father being missing…”

“Yeah, I can’t believe he’s missing…” 

“Do you think he’s alright? Sounds like serious stuff is going on out there…” James said  throwing a pillow at Peter who had been dozing off.

“I don’t know what to think…” Lupin admitted “I think Severus thoughts were same as mine, but we weren’t going to say that the chances seemed to point into the bad side of the situation. Ted Tonks is a muggle born and in the top list of Bellatrix’s Bounty list…”

“Bloody Bellatrix…” Sirius groaned punching one of his bed posts “Dromeda must be destroyed…”

“If what Dora told me is accurate, destroyed is an understatement….” Lupin sighed “The main reason Dora brokedown with Snape was because she’d bottled up all her grief in order to not alter Andromeda more than she already was…”

“Hah...poor Snivellus. I mean having a girl just go into floods out of sudden…” James snorted “Honestly I’d have panicked.”

“So… is she really that...you know, bad?” Sirius asked “I just want to know so that I don’t throw a spanner in the works by saying something I shouldn’t…”

“I’m afraid that you saying something is the last of our concerns…”Lupin sighed “The news of the attack will be in the newspaper tomorrow; Dora’s dad will probably be listed as missing...can you guess who’s going to be ready to rub it in her face…”

“Boreas and his gang of Slytherin buggers…” Sirius said bitterly “He’s not going to miss this chance…”

“Precisely…” Lupin said shaking his head “Now, Dora is going to get annoyed by it, but in her current emotional turmoil….I think we should consider taking hands in the matter. I’m sure she can defend herself nicely, but if she’s upset…”

“Ah...sounds like job for us…” James nodded “So...what’s the plan, Moony?”

“The only thing I can think of is...diversion.” Lupin shrugged.

“Diversion?”

“Keep Boreas out of Dora’s way, naturally…” Lupin explained “there’s nothing we can do about the news  spreading and there’s going to be talk, but at least...we can prevent the Slyths harassing her…”

“Heh… does it mean we’ve got Moony’s blessing to prank Boreas?”

“As long as you keep it safe…” Lupin said sternly.

“Ah, come on, Moony. When have we ever done anything that could harm anyone?” Sirius said with a goofy grin.

“You don’t want me answer that…”

“Do you reckon Snivellus will be up to help again?”

“I’ve got the feeling that he might be up to it…” Lupin nodded.

“Then granted that Boreas is going to have some busy days…” Sirius grinned mischievously “Do we still have those hairtongue mints?”

“A whole box, Pads...a whole box…”

Lupin laughed as his friends began discuss all the pranks they would release over Boreas and the Slytherin crew; however, his laugh was only half hearted. A part of him was still concerned about Tonks and , natureally, the fate of her father. He could only pray that he would be safe and sound. 

Just like Lupin predicted, the news about the attack in London was in the Daily Prophet’s Headlines the next morning: DARK WIZARDS ATTACK MAGICAL ARCHIVES

 

_ St. Luke’s, London _

 

_ A few minutes past noon from yesterday, the Royal Archives of Magical Annals (RAMA) was raided by a group of at least 10 wizards.  The event resulted in the destruction of a quarter of the RAMA main building along with the burning of several valuable documents. One dead was confirmed while at least 7 people are currently listed as missing.  _

_ The reasons of the attack are unknown, but it is believed that it was a failed attempt of robbing. Aurors that secured the area refused to make comment regarding the situation.  _

_ With this attack, the number of violent events has increased to 4 in the last month. More information in page... _

 

The full article listed the names of the missing people and the confirmed death: a muggle born wizard of 45 years old that worked as archivist in RAMA. His body was discovered under the debris of the collapsed wing, however, it was unknown if the cause of dead was a curse rather than physical injuries.  Lupin saw with grief the name Edward Tonks listed in the missing people. 

“Royal Archives of Magical Annals…” James readed over his shoulder “What is that?”

“It is basically a giant library with all magical records  and files that the ministry consider valuable, but not significantly important to be kept under major security. My dad has told me about it. He’s gone a couple of times whenever he needs some information for his researches, but I’ve never gone myself.” 

“If they’re not important why bother attacking it?” Peter asked.

“Maybe they just wanted to send a message…” Sirius said. 

“Yeah...terrorize everyone and all…” James reasoned.

Lupin wasn’t entirely convinced that terrorizing would a reason enough to attack that place. If they had wanted to cause terror, they would have attacked a bigger and crowder place instead. His father had told him once that most of the things that the Ministry didn’t consider important enough to be put in the Department of Mysteries, ended up archived in RAMA. That’s why most of the information regarding Non-Human. Spirituous Apparitions was stored in there; his father always complained about the lack of proper security in the building saying that Ministry was biased by their own interests regarding what was important and what was not. 

“Hey Slyth Plonkers on sight…” James said nudging his to the Slytherin table “Someone seems too happy for my taste…”

“He must have read the article already…” Sirius growled slamming his cup on the table “Ah...I want to slap that grin out of his face…”

“Whose face?” Lily slipping into the seat next to Lupin “Never mind, I don’t want to know what mischief you are planning, Black.”

“Hey, Evans. Good morning!”

“Good morning Potter. Did you all read those news?” Lily asked pointing at the folded newspaper.

“Yes...nasty stuff…” James sighed “If you come to ask about Tonks…”

“So it  _ is _ Tonks. Good heaven...I was hoping it was someone with the same name. Is she alright? I mean she...knows, right?”

“She knows...McGonagall and Sprout told her before anyone else would…” Lupin answered “she isn’t too well. Had a total breakdown yesterday with Snape…”

“What? Severus didn’t tell me a thing! What happened?”

“Too much in too short time…” Lupin replied shaking his head.

“Snivellus came up running and dragged Remus to help him with my cousin’s tears…”

“Oh...well played, Severus…” Lily approved “Either way...is she alright?”

“She calmed down a bit and Severus made her some tranquilizing serums; but I’m not sure if that even counts as well…”

“I don’t think she’s going to show up for breakfast….” Sirius said “Honestly, I doubt she’ll turn in for classes at all. I mean I wouldn’t…”

“Black, you would skip classes even if you didn’t have a reasonable excuse to do so…”

“That, too…”

“Tonks won’t skip classes. She’s not going to let anyone see she’s affected…” Lily said shaking her head “She’s just like that. She’ll dive in and act brave even if she’s melting in the inside…”

“Which is why, we are going to keep those Slythplonkers out of the way…”

“Do I want to know?” 

“Probably not, Evans…”

“Better if you stay out of it…” James nodded “Talking about the Geasar the Conquerer….isn’t that Tonks?”

Lupin and Lily immediately turned to the door. Tonks had just stepped into the Great Hall, but she hadn’t even given two steps to the Hufflepuff table when she was tackled by Snape who grabbed her arm and dragged her out. 

“Well...now that’s weird…” Peter said with a frown.

“Severus must have heard something in the Slytherin table…” Lily said biting her lower lip “I’ll go check…”

“We’re coming with you…”

The group rushed out of the Great Hall in time to see Snape dragging Tonks to the courtyard. Lupin was slightly relieved that the girl seemed to have recovered at least a little bit of her cheerfulness, but was saddened when he saw the dull brown hair and the eye bags in her face. He knew the girl would have tried to morph them to hide them and the fact that they were visible only meant that she was too emotionally down to morph properly. 

“Ahhh….Severuuuus….where are you taking meee….?”   
“Are you really that idiot? What are you thinking walking into the Great Hall like that?”

“Well...what did you want me to do? I  _ am _ hungry… and that’s where breakfast is served.”

Snape rolled his eyes and smacked her head with the book he’d been holding. 

“AUCH...what was that for?”

“That’s….for being stupid…”

“What’s so stupid about being hungry?” Tonks pouted. 

“Good to see you’re mostly yourself, cous…” Sirius grinned  putting his arms about her shoulders.

“AH...Wotcher, Sirius…” Tonks greeted “What did you expect? That’d go hide under a rock or something? That’s not what my dad would want me to do and he’ll certainly lecture me if he finds out when he comes back...so nope...Let those buggers say whatever they want...worse case scenario I’ll just throw them a good hex...”

“Now that’s more like my little cous…”Sirius grinned ruffling her hair “So...dropping the hood today too?”

“Up for a little change this morning. That will give Boreas one less thing to harass me about.”

“Brown hair? Weren’t you blonde the last time we saw you? How did you change it?” Peter asked.

“Ah...you know there’s a funny trick that muggles use to change their hair color...It’s called  _ dyeing.” _

_ “ _ So you dye your hair?” Lily laughed “There I thought you used a spell…”

“Hey, maybe I do that too...sometimes…”

“I’m glad to see you’re alright, Tonks. If you need anything...don’t doubt to tell me, okay?” Lily said grabbing the girl’s hands “We are friends after all…”

“Ah...I wouldn’t want to bother you….” Tonks smiled “Don’t I have Severus for that?”

“So...you don’t want to bother, Lily; but have no problems at pestering  _ me?”  _ Snape glared at her.

“You were the one who dragged me out of the Great Hall! Now you owe me breakfast!”

“Like  you needed to eat more…”

“Hey! That’s rude...Lily look, Severus is bullying me…”

“Now you ran to Lily…”

“She said I could if I needed something…”

“That’s not what she meant…”

“Either way...I’m still hungry!”

“I sneaked out a chestnut tart. Do you want it?” Lupin said casually. 

In fact, he had actually brought it for her and he could tell by Tonks smile that she knew it. 

“Trust, Remus to save that day…” Sirius chuckled.

“Yeah, isn’t flucky that he happened to have sneaked out food from the Great Hall?” James said winking at James. 

“Ah...that only proves my point that Remus is, in the whole word, a knight in shiny armor…”

“Yes, indeed. A knight in a shiny armor that happens to be single, cous…” Sirius said wagging his eyebrows at her.

“Hah...and how do you know this? Remus might have a secret sweetheart right under your nose and you wouldn’t know.”

“That’s not possible...it’s Remus…” Sirius bark laughed.

“Yes, Remus is all manners and decorum...he wouldn’t have a secret lover and not tell us…” James nodded.

“That’s right…!” Peter agreed.

Lupin covered his face so that his friends wouldn’t see him flushed. He heard a loud snort from  Snape followed by a groan as Tonks elbowed him in his ribs. 

“Well you three sound convinced….what if he doesn’t want you nosing around when hes snogging his girl, huh?”

“As if...no, no..listen here, Tonksie…” Sirius said with a grin “Our Remus is single, you can be sure of that…”

“He is, is he not? Well… I guess that’s something only he knows. Now...if you don’t mind...I’ll eat this lovely tart and head up to DADA...”

“See you at lunch, Tonks? We could have a picnic out here...it looks like a beautiful day!” Lily offered. The real reason behind the offer was that she wanted to spare Tonks the visit to the Great Hall where all the student body would be gossiping about her.

“Ah...sounds nice. Alright, I’ll see you at lunch then!”

With that said, Tonks smiled and walked away eating up her tart. Lupin watched her until her back disappeared on the corner of the courtyard and let out a sigh. At first glance, anyone would think she was perfectly fine, but Lupin knew better. She could be all smiles and jokes; acting as if nothing had ever happened; but the fact that her hair was brown and that she didn’t even bother wearing her hood meant that she wasn’t afraid that her hair would morph accidently.  Metamorphmagi powers were tied to their emotions, and when a metamorphmagus wasn’t well, the morphing simply shut down.

He’d have to find a chance to talk to her. 

 

***

Tonks left her last class exhausted. She had put up her “Strong girl” mask : ignoring the gossipers, thanking the people who had come to show her some pity and evading the ones who seemed to anxious to ask questions. Her morphing powers weren’t working and Tonks knew that she looked worse than a troll. 

Dealing with a bunch of curious students was tiring and she was only waiting for the Slytherins to show up with some of their pure blood sadistic mocks; the curious thing was that she hadn’t seen Boreas and his gang even once in the whole day and she had the nagging sensation that Lupin and her friends were behind it. 

When she sneaked into the Muggle Lit section that afternoon, Lupin was already there reading a book that she recognized as War and Peace. The boy raised his look as soon as she stepped into the cubicle and slid the door close.

“Hey…”

“Wotcher…” she sighed sitting down by his side and leaning against him with obvious exhaustion. 

Lupin put down his book  to hug her and kissed her temple. She was pale and her eyes were puffed and red as if she’d held her tears a few times before.

“I’m not going to to ask how was your day…” he whispered “or  how are you feeling. I’ve got some chocolate for you though. It should help you feel better...”

“I should have known my show wouldn’t fool you…” she sighed “What gave me away?”

“Your morphing…” he answered “You lose it when you’re not feeling well…”   
“Ah...why do you have to be such a clever boy?”

“It’s part of my charm, according to you…”

“Yes...it is. Distract me a little please. Everything has been about dad and that stupid attack today...and if I hear it anymore I’m seriously going to start crying like yesterday…”

“You know there’s nothing wrong about crying…” he said brushing her lanky brown hair “it’s better than keeping it in…”

“I just don’t want to cry….it makes me look puffy and ugly….”

“Silly…” he added lifting her face “I prefer you puffy and ugly, than suffering silently…”

“You’ll regret it...I’m not looking my best right now and I’ll look even worse if I cry…”

“I can deal with it, can’t I my dear secret lover?” he snorted.

“Ah...yes...I told you you they had no idea…” she snickered “So good mannered and decorum huh?”

“Just because I tend to be a little stiffer than Sirius, James and Peter…”he smiled “blame my mother for it, or rather thank her. It doesn’t mean I am not up for some mischief every once in a while…”

“Like sneaking into the forbidden forest to have a date with a secret sweetheart?”

“Like sneaking out with my secret sweetheart yes and perhaps snogging her in the library…” 

Lupin leaned in to kiss her and Tonks happily returned the gesture. Their initial shyness had began to fade off as they spent time together, and their kisses were more natural and fluid; of course that being the gentleman he was, their kisses were always chaste, but filled with that implicit care and love that they both knew without having to say it.  

“Now I believe my grandma when she said that kisses make everything better…” she said resting her head against his arm.

“Funny...my mum says the same…” Lupin chuckled.

“It’s a Wales thing then…” she smiled lacing her fingers with his. 

“Could be…”he smiled “oh, I intended to ask…how long has Snape known about us?”

Tonks snorted at his question. 

“Since day one… “ she laughed “the first thing he said was : _ aren't you happy that I made you fall from that tree now?” _

_ “ _ Did…. Did Snape set us up?” Lupin said shocked. 

“Yes, his excuse was that he was starting to get fed up with our idiocy…”

“My list of debts to Severus keeps growing. That's not good… “

“I told you he was a good chap. You just never tried to know him…”

“Yes, we are a bunch of idiots… “ he chuckled “That's why you're such a wonderful girl…”

“Since we are talking about Severus… There's something you should know… “

“Uhm?”

“He knows… “she said softly” about the moons. He found out after watching the pattern…”

 

Somehow, he wasn't surprised. Snape wasn't stupid and he would eventually make the the math. He probably knew what those pain relieving potions were for since the beginning. 

“He won't tell, so don't worry…”

“I know. Severus proved that he's one of the best slytherins in history… “

“Even when he's too shy to admit he's a nice bloke… “

Lupin smiled at how well she read Snape. The truth would be that none of them would be in such friendly terms with Snape if it wasn't for Tonks. She'd been the first to befriend the boy and she, in a way, became a bridge between the Marauders and the taciturn Slytherin. If Tonks had never crossed their paths, they would, probably, still be throwing hexes and hating each other instead of having him help out with pranks. 

“talking about Slytherin… do you happen to know why Boreas and his court haven't shown up to rub me the bad way?”

“ah… well….ummm”

“Remus?”

“we might have something to do with that…”

“OH merlin….what did you, chaps, do?”

“Not much….” he smiled mischievously“just a few innocent pranks to keep him busy and out of your way…”

“Oh, dear Merlin. I can't imagine what you're up to… “

“Nothing too serious… I think today was hairtongue pastillas in his pumpkin juice and last time I checked they were planning to mess up with his cauldron tomorrow at potions. Any advice regarding that?”

“And why……”she chuckled locking her arms around his neck” are you asking me? Aren't you the mastermind behind The Marauders pranks? “Well… sometimes, but since you've done it before… I was hoping for the opinion of an expert….”

“I don't know what you're talking about….” she said innocently. 

“I happen to remember a certain incident with an exploding cauldron not too long ago…”

“And what makes you think I had something to do with that?”

“Mmm...just a hunch…” he chuckled.

“Pff...well, there is something I can tell you though…” she smiled at him “Shuffle his ingredients a little. Boreas is such a troll that he won’t notice the difference. He’ll make his cauldron mess up without you having to do too much…”

“And how do you know this? You’re not even in the same years as us…” Lupin laughed.

“Ah...you should hear Severus complaining about him. Let me tell you, Severus would be a fine potions teacher, but hell...I wouldn’t want to be his student…” 

“I’ll make sure to tell the others that…”

Tonks chuckled and unlocked her arms from around his neck  to take his hand. She stared at the boys green eyes and felt endlessly grateful for having him and her friends and she promised herself that someday, she’d do something to repay them.


	26. Listen and you will find

 

"Hope is the thing with feathers 

That perches in the soul 

And sings the tune without the words 

And never stops at all." 

—  **Emily Dickinson**

  
  


The days passed awfully slow and, to Tonks despair,  there were no news about Ted Tonks’s whereabouts. Her bottled up feelings were starting to get a toll on her and , as the full moon approached, her health began to decay to the point that Madam Pomfrey considered talking to Dumbledore into taking the girl to St. Mungos. Naturally, Tonks objected. The last thing her mother needed now, was another emotional blow; but Madam Pomfrey wasn’t happy and nor was Lupin.

“Isn’t there a way I can make you reconsider?” the young werewolf told her one afternoon as he sat by her side in the hospital wing. 

Tonks felt a little guilty. Lupin wasn’t looking his best either and it wasn’t entirely because of the upcoming full moon; in fact, he seemed to be doing a lot better recently thanks to the potions that Tonks so devotely provided him; but uptight as he was, his worries  over her girlfriend’s health was making him almost as miserable as the ill girl.

“You know there is really nothing the healers can do…” Tonks said “And going to St. Mungo will only make my mother worry more. It’s enough with my father’s matter...she doesn’t need anything more in her hands...”

Tonks pushed herself up from the bed and fixed her robes before leaving the Hospital Wing using Lupin’s arm as support. 

“Ah...it’s a pretty day today. Let’s go out, Remus...” Tonks said cheerfully.

“Madam Pomfrey said you shouldn’t be wandering around…”

“But I won’t. I’ll be resting nicely...outside…”

“A part of me tells me that I shouldn’t agree to that...but how I’m I supposed to say no to that look?”

“Ah...don’t tease me, Remus...you know I can’t morph and I’m looking horrible....”

“No, you’ll be amazed to know that I still think you look adorable as usual…”

“Liar...but I appreciate it. I’ll love to snog you, but you know...someone might see us…”

“Ah…” Lupin sighed “I’m starting to regret agreeing to that stupid bet…”

“Haha..you silly. Blame your thick headed friends for it…” Tonks laughed.

“I might have to sock those three then…” Lupin sighed in half feigned frustration.

“Oh, have fun with that…”

“ I will. Oh, careful with the last step. You always trip on that one…”

“Who said I…”

Tonks hadn’t finished her last sentence when she missed her last step and tripped.Fortunately for her, out habit now, Lupin had caught her by her waist and stopped her from adding a concussion to her current health failure’s list.

“Look at that...I didn’t know you had a thing for halfblood scums, Lupin…” 

Lupin helped Tonks back up and glared at Boreas who was standing at the top of the stairs with a nasty smirk along with his usual followers Yaxley and Burkes.

“But wait, Boreas...isn’t Lupin a half blood too?” Burkes snorted. 

“Both are halfblood scum...perfect match…”

“Shut it, Boreas. Leave Remus out of this…” Tonks barked at the Slytherins.

“Heh, still waiting for news about your mudblood dad, aren’t you, half blood scum?” Boreas smiled cruelly “I wouldn’t keep my hopes too high. He’s probably long dead. As it should be…”   
Tonks sensed a twitch around her hip. Lupin’s hand was resting on his wand and the bitter and murderous look in his eyes looked a lot more like the wolf’s. Sensing that the influence of the upcoming full moon would probably have Lupin in a foul mood, Tonks rested her hand on his and shook her head.

“Don’t…”she muttered.

“They found one of the missing mudbloods, did you know?” Boreas smiled “floating useless in the Thames...like a bag of rubbish. How long until they find your daddy? Do you want to make a bet?”

“Boreas...I’m warning you…” Lupin said in a low and poisonous tone that made Tonks shudder.

“My dad will be fine. I know he is fine Boreas...so that’s a bet you can’t win.”

“If he’s so well, then why hasn’t he come back?”

“He’ll come back..”

“Yeah, sure he will. Do you think they’ll deliver him in pieces? I hear they sometimes cut them into small pieces and send them home piece….by piece…” Boreas laughed “what did you want to get first, halfblood? The head maybe….”

Tonks didn't have to respond. In fact, it took her several seconds to understand the what had just happened because one second she had the trio of Slytherin dorks telling her nasty words and the next there was three strange mutant creature lying at the top of the stairs. It was like a deformed mix of a cat, a giant maggot, a cow , some sort of lizard and a squirrel: extremely ugly and disgusting. 

“Hah… I  guess that responds the question of what happens when multiple people try to transform one single target” Sirius said coming from behind them and resting his elbow on Lupin's shoulder. 

“That's probably what McGonagall calls a highly unsuccessful transfiguration. Who did the cat?” James asked. 

“Me… “Sirius admitted” the giant maggot? “

“That was mine… “Lupin replied” not quite like what I envisioned, but satisfactory”

“Are you all mental? McGonagall is going to kill you for doing this to another student… “ Tonks said in an alarmed tone.

“These bastards deserved even worse for how they were talking!”Sirius barked “Even Moony got worked up. I regret nothing ;bring in detention if you want, I don’t bloody care…”

“Well, I will definitely keep that in mind, Mr. Black…”

Sirius paled a little and Tonks knew that, despite the boys bragging, he was actually terrified of the idea of detention with the head of Gryffindor. His friends seemed equally horrified, even Lupin seemed a little nervous to be caught in the act and feeling responsible of the events, Tonks was first one to speak.

“Professor McGonagall...it wasn’t their fault. They were just….trying to defend me from Boreas harassment. They…”

“It’s enough Ms. Tonks. I saw what happened and even if I sympathize with the reasons they did what they did, transfiguring another student is still against the school rules and it must be properly punished. Five points less for Gryffindor per each of you and Black, since you seemed so delighted with the idea of detention...you’ll be cleaning up the trophies in the Trophy Room with NO magic. You and your friends were the ones who thought it’d be entertaining to drop slimecrackers in there, after all…”

Sirius let out a groan and James broke into a fit of laughter that was quickly silenced by McGonagall’s stern look. 

“Potter, Pettigrew and Lupin will help. Now...if you excuse me. I must...repair the damage...”

McGonagall waved her wand and the three mutant creatures that had once been Boreas, Yaxley and Burkes levitated from the ground ad followed the stern teacher into the castle.

“Well...that was scary…” James laughed “but I guess it could have been worse. I mean cleaning trophies in the muggle way is a rather...dull punishment considering what we did…”

“Wait...there were four of us, but five animals …” Lupin whispered in thought.

The four boys and Tonks eyes widened in realization.

“You don’t reckon...McGonagall…” Sirius  grinned.

“No, joke….that’s why she’s the best…” James laughed “Where were you two going anyway?”

“Just for a walk…” Tonks shrugged “I could use some fresh air and Remus offered to accompany me out of gallantry.”

“I don’t blame him. You look like if an erumpent rolled twice over you…” 

“Geez, thanks for reminding me I’m not exactly the prettiest girl in school. I already knew that…” Tonks said rolling her eyes and she felt Lupin pull her hand slightly. 

“I didn’t mean that…” Sirius said patting her back “I just say that you could use a good meal...have you eaten today?”

“Severus forced me to eat the a whole shepherds pie for  lunch and to make it worse, Remus has been drowning me on chocolate… so yes...”

“Well, better that that you starving yourself to death…” Sirius approved “How do you feel about three more escorts to your little stroll?”

“I don’t see why not.”

“All good then. Where are we heading?”

“There’s a nice spot with a view by the edge of the forest…”

“Oh...I know where…” Lupin nodded “That’s a good place.”

The group made their ways to the signalled spot and the first thing Tonks did was sit down with her back leaning against the knotty trunk of an elder tree  and Lupin claimed the empty space by her side while Sirius, James and Peter fooled around. Using their distraction, Lupin grabbed her hand and began to draw circles on her hand with his thumb.

“Just for the record…” he whispered “I think you are one of the prettiest girls around…”

“You say it out of duty…”

Tonks chuckled; she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She sensed the light touch of the autumn breeze over her skin and the mild scent of grass and wildflowers. It made her feel better and sleepy.

 

_...Nymphadora…. _

 

Tonks could hear a soft and musical voice muttered in the back of her head. The voice sounded almost like a soft lull, ethereal, almost like dream.

 

_...Nymphadora… _

_...Come... _

_...He’s here… _

_...needs you… _

 

_ Who?  _ Tonks thought  _ Who needs me? _

_...forest… _

_..father… _

_..find us… _

Tonks’s eyes snapped open at the mention of her father. A sudden urge of energy coarsed her back on her feet and almost as if she was under a spell, the girl ran into the forest ignoring the alarmed screams of her friends.

_...quick… _

_ Needs you…. _

_ Danger… _

Tonks ran through the woods feeling as if someone or something was guiding her. SHe could hear a faint sound of footsteps behind her and she somehow knew they belonged to LUpin and her cousin even without looking back. The soothing voice kept calling her, coarsing her,  _ guiding  _ her until she reached a small clearing barely illuminated. The place was empty, no animals, no sound. Not even then chant of birds could be heard. Suddenly, there was a crack followed by the sound of a broken branch. Tonks pulled out her wand.

“ _ Lumos.” _

The lit up tip of her wand shone brightly through the shadows casted by the trees. A small shape was moving closer, a man with torn robes stained with blood and bruised skin. His light brown, almost blonde, hair dirtied with mud and dried blood. He walked with a limp and with an air of exhaustion, but Tonks’s didn’t need to see his face to know who it was.

“Dad?”

The man raised his face in alarm, but his eyes softened when she saw the small witch standing in front of him. His lips curved in a weak smile.

“Dora...it is really you…” he mumbled and then passed out over the damp mossy forest ground.

 

***

 

McGonagall was surprised when James Potter and Peter Pettigrew slammed at her door as if they had wanted to blow it down; she was shocked when the two boys mumbled  almost incomprehensible words and dragged her all the way out to the castle grounds, but none of her initial reaction could compare to the shock she felt when she saw Remus Lupin and Sirius Black making their way back to the castle. The First one had a strong hold of Nymphadora Tonks who, if possible, was looking paler and the second boy was helping a very beaten up man that the head of Gryffindor recognized instantly as Ted Tonks. 

With her head filled with questions, but knowing that the man needed medical care, McGonagall led them to the Hospital Wing while sending James to call professor Dumbledore. Madam Pomfrey was horrified by the state of both Tonks, primarily Ted; and she didn’t hesitate to push out everyone in the rooms as she attended the older Tonks. 

“Care to explain what in Merlin’s name happened?” McGonagall demanded.

But neither LUpin or Sirius knew for sure. Sirius began to explain how they had been sitting quietly by the edge of the forest when Tonks suddenly stood up as if in a trance and ran off into the forest. Without thinking it - which was rare since Lupin never acted out of impulse- Lupin had ran after her and SIrius had followed after sending James and Peter to find help. By the time they had caught with the girl, they found her hovering and crying desperately over her father passed out body.

McGonagall turned to the girl, she had her forehead resting against Lupin’s shoulder while the boy held her protectively against himself. The stern teacher had to restrain herself from smiling at the pair. Before she could begin to question her, though, the door of the Hospital Wing opened and professor Dumbledore walked into the room with a concerned look. After hearing the events from McGonagall’s lips, he put his hand Tonks’s head and whispered softly. 

“Ms. Tonks..are you alright?”

“I think she’s still in shock, professor…” Lupin said with worry “She hasn’t said a word since when left the forest…”

Dumbledore nodded. The old man kneeled to their level and looked at Lupin.

“May I try something?”

“Of course, professor.”

“Hold her tightly. Sometimes they can get...restless…” Dumbledore commanded. He flickered his wand and whispered “ _ Mentis libero…” _

As soon as the words had left his lips, Tonks let out a loud gasp and her body stumbled into Lupin’s hold as if all her strength had suddenly left her.  Sirius let out an alarmed groan and rushed to his cousin’s side.

“It’s alright, Mr. Black…” Dumbledore said soothingly “She needs a little air and maybe some bite of chocolate…”

“Albus...what’s the meaning of this?” McGonagall asked quite alarmed.

“Ah, yes. Of course I should explain… Ms. Tonks seems to have been a little overwhelmed by the shock. I just used a little spell to release her from it. Now, boys...why don’t you take Ms. Tonks closer to the fire. She seems awfully cold and we don’t want to have Andromeda Tonks see her daughter in the brick of hypothermia when she arrives. I shall go go speak to dear Poppy, Minerva. Care to join us?”

The teachers left the four confused boys with a trembling Tonks and walked into the private section of the Hospital Wing. Waking up from his shock, Lupin pulled Tonks to a spot closer to the fire and began rummaging in this pockets until he found another chocolate bar.

“Really mate...your weird habit of keeping chocolate in your pockets is beginning to make sense, you know?” James laughed “Always prepared Moony.”

“Dad always keep chocolate on him. Says it is good when you get struck by a heavy mental shock. I eventually caught the habit, but recently I’m thankful for it. Take it, Dora…”

“Thanks…” she mumbled picking the piece that the boy had offered.

“Cous...what the bloody hell were you thinking? Running to the Forbidden Forest like a mad horse and all?” Sirius growled in a big brother scold way that none of his friends had ever heard from him “Moony was mental. He said there were werewolves close by…”

“Werewolves?” Tonks said turning to look at Lupin¿s sad eyes.

“Yes, you know that, like wolves, werewolves are territorial and this close to full moon I am more in touch with my less human part. I could tell there were intruders of my kind in the area…” 

Tonks scowled; not by the fact she’d been threatened by werewolves, but rather by the way Lupin had said “my kind” as if he was some sort of mutant animal.

“It was a reckless thing to do, Dora...what if you had stumbled with one of them?” 

Tonks saw a mortified look in Lupin’s eyes and for a minute she felt like throwing the bet out of the window. She took his hand and squeezed it.

“Ah, don’t overthink it, Moony. Tonksie is fine…” James patted his back “and she found her dad. Isn’t that good news?”

“Dad...where’s my dad? Is he alright? Is he…?”

“He’s alright. Madam Pomfrey said he was a little beaten up, but that we some rest he’ll be fine…” Sirius said “Now eat that up, cous. Before ANdromeda hangs us for not taking proper care of you…”

“But…”

“It’ll be alright… come on, eat it…”

Tonks sighed as she bit on the piece of chocolate; after the push of adrenaline or whatever that had been, her body was left with little to no stamina to even sit straight, so she let herself lean against Lupin’s welcoming warmth. If she had to lose the bet today, so be it, she was too tired to care.

***

The day when Ted  and Andromeda Tonks were preparing to go back to their homes, Lupin was the one to accompany her to say goodbye. Lupin felt his heart warm up when he saw Tonks hugging her father under Andromeda’s smiling eyes. The girl was smiling in a way he hadn’t seen her do ever since the news of her dad had come out and a veil of relief fell over him when the bright and lovely smile that always charmed her was once again shiny in her lovely face.

“And where did my foolish cousin and your other friends go?” ANdromeda asked him softly stepping closer to him as she watched her daughter laugh brightly a her dad’s silly jokes.

“ Those three earned themselves another detention for breaking Filch’s cupboard while I wasn’t looking. It is just me today…”

“It’s alright, Remus. As much as I like my cousin, I can only take a little much of his noisy blabbering. Your quiet personality...is quite more pleasant.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Tonks…”

“How was...the full moon?”

Lupin was still getting used to be asked those questions so openly. He still had troubles to with the fact that both Ted and Andromeda seemed to be completely at ease around him despite his condition. THis was the first time that he faced them after his change of status with their daughter after all and  he was amazed that they would allow their only daughter to consort with him.

“It’s been better, recently, thank you” he said politely “ I owe it to Dora...” 

“Oh, aren’t you a little early to start talking like that…?” Andromeda chuckled.

“Ah...no! I mean, her support is...wonderful, and..she’s a wonderful potioneer as well and…”

“It’s alright, Remus. I was just teasing you. I appreciate that you’ve been taking care of her for us and...I wanted to let you know that...we know you’re a good boy and that, as long as Nymphadora is happy, we don’t see anything wrong about you two...”

“I…”

“Mum, you’re not intimidating Remus with another of you lectures are you?”

“Nymphadora, what are you saying? I was just having a nice talk with Remus…”

“Sure you were…” Ted laughed “I thought we agreed it’d be me giving him that father talk…”

“I have not say a thing, Ted. Don’t be ridiculous…”

“OI, stop it. You’re embarrassing me, now…”Tonks shuddered “Are you going back today?”

“Ah, yes. It’d be nice to go home.” Ted said taking his wife’s hand “Madam Pomfrey has finally given me the green light...and honestly, as wonderful as Hogwarts’s food is, I miss your mum’s cooking.”

“Fair…” Tonks smiled and then she threw herself to hug her father one last time “take care dad…” 

“You too, Dora. Don’t give Remus too many headaches would you?”

“When have I ever given anyone a headache?”

“You don’t want  _ me _ to answer that, Nymphadora…” Andromeda said. The Tonks matriarch leaned to put a kiss on her daughter’s head “Now off you. Don’t you have a date or something to do?”

“Mum?”

“It’s weekend. You should be taking her around Hogsmeade or something…” Tonks laughed “There was this cute little place past the Hogshead were I used to take you mum. QUiet and usually student free. It’s a perfect place to spend the afternoon in a secret date…”

“Oh, Ted. Leave the children alone…” Andromeda chuckled “Let’s go now Ted. We need to see Albus before we leave…”

Tonks and Lupin walked the Ted and Andromeda to the gargoyle that led to the headmaster’s office. After another round  of hugs and goodbyes, the Tonks disappeared from view, leaving the two younger ones alone once more. Tonks took a look around and after making sure that there was no one around, she slipped her hand into Lupin’s.

“What was my dearest mum telling you?” 

“Nothing. She just asked me how my full moon was…”

“Oh..I can be at ease then. I was afraid she might have been telling you something embarrassing about me…”

“From all things to worry, Dora…”

“No, really. I’m sure my mum thinks you’re way too good for me…” she snickered.

Lupin turned to her with incredulous eyes.

“Dora...be reasonable…”

“I am. I mean you’re a good boy, quiet, clever...a good student…” Tonks began counting with her fingers “My mum was glaring at me the other night telling me that she’d have no face to face your parents if I dragged you into troubles. I’m sure she’s convinced that I am a bad influence for you…”

Lupin was speechless. He was a werewolf; they should be worried that he was a bad influence on her, not the other way around. What was with the Tonks and their way to oversee the fact that he was a monster?

“Thinking back to it...I might be. As far as I’ve known you, you’ve only been in detention twice and both times it was my fault.”

“Dora…”

“Oh, don’t let my mum find out about that. It will be our secret, okay?”

“Dora!”

“What?”

“I…”

Lupin was about to throw in his usual speech regarding his condition, but it seemed that Tonks had forseen it and before the boy could even say a thing she’d stood on her tiptoes and kissed him into silence.

“No, no…” she whispered with a smile “as far as I’m concerned, you’re another boy and nothing you say will ever make me change my mind. “

Tonks stepped back as a group of Ravenclaws appeared at the end of the stairs; by their looks, they seemed to be heading to Hogsmeade.The girls passed by his side, as Tonks walked off grinning playfully. 

“You...are an unfair girl…” he mumbled at her when he managed to cross the sea of students and caught up with her by the stairs that led to the courtyard.

“Now I am unfair?”

“You are. You did that knowing that I couldn’t kiss you with all those ravenclaws around.” he said poking her waist. 

“Of course not…” she smiled innocently.

“You know what? Maybe you’re right...you definitely are a bad influence.”

“Oh, what did I do now?”

“You…” he said pulling her into a hidden corner behind a column and kissing her “...are giving me bad habits I enjoy…”


	27. Second impressions make a difference

Never trust to general impressions, my boy, but concentrate yourself upon details." 

—  [ **Arthur Conan Doyle** ](https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2448.Arthur_Conan_Doyle)

 

Alastor Moody, auror extraordinaire, was in a very bad mood as he made his way to the Weasley’s house for another meeting with the Order. The new batch of auror recruits were a bunch of incompetent babies that could hardly throw out a well aimed hex. 

“Not looking too happy, are we Mad-Eye?”Fabian Prewett smirked when the moody auror crossed the doorstep and into the kitchen. 

The youngest of the Prewett twins had his feet resting on the table and his hands behind his head. Moody replied with an annoyer glare before pulling out a chair and sitting down on the table where the other twin, Gideon, was playing with a ginger haired toddler.

“Fabian, how many times do I have to tell you…” Molly Weasley said in annoyance “Feet off the table!”

“You sound like mum…” Fabian said rolling his eyes. 

“Well...she  _ is _ a mum now, Fabian” Gideon chuckled “Good luck BillieBops. You’ll know what’s fury when she gets you your first lecture...”

“Oh, quiet down Gideon”Molly glared at her brother before turning to the auror and smiling “Good night, Alastor, dear. Would you like a cup a tea?”

“Tea would be nice…”

“Oh dear Merlin, Ted! It is so good to see you!” 

The auror looked at the newcomers and was pleased to see Ted and Andromeda Tonks step out from the fireplace. Ted helped his wife and grinned to all the present.

“And I am happy to be in one piece, Molly.” 

“Albus will come in a bit. He had to check on some school business…” Andromeda informed.

“Oh, it is fine. We are still missing a few people anyway.” Molly nodded “Arthur hasn’t arrived yet.”

The Prewett twins moved to greet Ted with a handshake and a smile; while ANdromeda fussed over Bill and chatted with Molly. 

“How’s your kid Andromeda?” Moody asked casually.

“Nymphadora?” Andromeda replied with Bill bawling on her hip “She’s as good as she could be; but it seems she inherited my taste for problematic men…”

“Hey, who said I’m problematic? I was a good boy…”

“You were problematic according to my family.”

“Ahh...your girlie got herself a bad boy boyfriend?” Fabian smirked “Naughty girl, is she?”

“Fabian, she’s 13 for god’s sake…” Molly glared at him.

“Not really a bad boy…” Andromeda replied “He’s a very nice boy, very clever and well mannered. He just happens to have a small issue; but it isn’t his fault…”

“A small issue? Now you have my attention. What is this issue?”

“Gideon, don’t be so nosy!”

“It’s not our place to say…” Ted smiled “but we saw them earlier and they seem very happy together. It reminded me of old times...don’t you think, Dromeda?”

“You’re being a romantic fool, Ted.”

“Do you happen to be talking about Mr. Lupin?” Dumbledore’s voice cut into their chat. A few minutes later, the figure of the headmaster emerged from the green flames. 

Dumbledore smiled through his half moon glasses and his long beard. 

“Those two seem to be a little secretive about it, but I can’t say I’m not pleased by this development. If there’s something that boy needed was someone to show him he deserves affection…”

“Poor boy…” Andromeda sighed.

“I’m not catching up...what’s wrong with the kid?”

“He’s a lycanthrope, fool.” Moody answered “Poor kid got bitten by Greyback when he was four. I remember that case. I was the auror on duty when it happened.”

“A werewolf!” Fabian said with his mouth open “Are you mental? How are you so...okay with you daughter dating a…”

“Don’t you say it…” Andromeda said glaring at Fabian with a look that Ted secretly called the Black Death Glare  “We know the boy and he couldn’t be any sweeter.”

“ If Dora likes him, then so be it. We didn’t raise her to let herself be led by prejudice” Ted smiled.

“A very wise decision…” Dumbledore approved “I assure you, Fabian, that Mr. Lupin is a good boy and that with the proper precautions, his condition is under control.”

Fabian seemed a little ashamed about his outburst; but, to his luck, the door opened once more and this time the friendly face of Arthur Weasley appeared in the kitchen.

“I am sorry for the delay…” he said kissing his wife and son “Got caught up with some crazy stuff at work. Did I miss something?”

“Nothing, just a small discussion about the Tonks lass lover preferences…”

“What?”

“Nothing, dear.”

“Very well. It seems that all of us are here. So shall we start? ” Dumbledore smiled “I am very pleased to have Ted back with us safe and sound. As you all might remember, I sent Ted into a secret assignment in the RAMA offices in London.”

“Did you find what we needed, lad?”  Moody asked with both of his eyes on him.

“Yes…” Ted replied pulling a small package from his robes and engorging it “It was lucky that I got to it first. The Death Eaters attacked right when I was leaving the building. Unfortunately, my dear sister in law recognized me and sent her dogs after me.”

Ted unwrapped the object and revealed a small brown box. Dumbledore took the box and examined it carefully. The box was magically sealed and a set of engravings were neatly carved on the wooden surface. THe symbols were from different origins: runes, egyptian, greek, celtic…

“I have never seen anything like it…” Ted mumbled “whatever is inside is bloody powerful. No surprise Voldemort wants it so badly…”

“Do you know what’s inside, professor?” Gideon asked curiously.

“I am afraid no...I can only guess…”Dumbledore replied “but Voldemort seems to be quite interested in its contents…”

“There are writings on this side…” Arthur pointed “It is english..?”

“Gaelic…” replied Ted “The box was retrieved from a celtic sanctuary years ago. It reads    
_ Is e tiodhlac a th 'ann bho shìthichean an iuchair a tha a' fosgladh cridhe na fae.” _

“Which means…?” Fabian asked interested.

“A gift from the fairies is the key to open the heart of the fae...or something like that.” Ted replied “I suspect that the celtics weren’t the firsts owner of that box. It will explain the different engravings. I want to look into them when I get a chance.”

“Were Bellatrix wolves hunting you for this box?” Arthur asked.

“Nah, they were hunting me for being me. I left a decoy in the archives before leaving. Voldemort must be doing exactly the same thing we’re doing with a fake one.”

“You did well, Ted. I shall take the box back to Hogwarts, where it will be safe until we figure out what this is…”

The rest of the group nodded. 

“Now...let’s proceed with the rest of the reports, shall we?”

“Not much to say in this side” Gideon said “He’s gaining followers both human and non human. Promising them stuff and things alike, but I didn’t dare dig too much into eat as to no drag too much attention…”

“The Ministry is still playing the blind eye…” Moody growled “dead keep popping up, but they refuse to see the threat. We are in disadvantage, Albus, Voldemort’s followers keep growing, while we are still only a few…”

“Darkness and power are always more tempting than the good…” Dumbledore sighed “We shall try to gain allies as best as we can. It won’t be an easy task, but we need to try. I am not sure of what Voldemort plans, but we can only move along with him.”

THe group exchanged concerned looks and nodded. Their battle was only beginning.

 

***

“I must admit. It is getting much better…” Snape checking the dark indigo liquid in the cauldron “But I don’t think it is drinkable yet...unless, of course, you want to kill your boyfriend…” 

“Oh very funny, Severus”

“Does he know you're going through all this to brew him this potion?” 

“Nope. He doesn't need to know….”she replied putting the cauldron's content into a bottle “at least not until he can drink it…”

“That won't happen too soon…”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence…” Tonks said rolling her eyes. She turned to shelves of ingredients and began looking through the tags “We need to restock. I guess I’ll do some shopping on the weekend…”

“You sure take a lot trouble for this…”

“It’s worth it. “

Snape’s eyes flickered to the door for a second before they returned to the girl that was busy writing down the list of ingredients that needed to be restock, She stumbled with a wooden bucket and glared at the offensive item. 

“may I ask a question or if curiosity?” 

“Are you asking why I am such an incompetent?” 

“If you could answer that, you wouldn’t be an incompetent.”

“Gee...thank you very much…”

“No, it’s just personal curiosity. Why do you seem love Lupin that much? Most people would give up after knowing...his condition…”

“Well, I am not most people and you love to point out how abnormal I am so…”

“Very funny Nymphadora, but who do you pretend to convince with that argument?”

“Ok, fine. Look it isn’t that complicated…”Tonks shrugged “I just can’t bring myself to care. What if he is a werewolf? Big deal, it’s part of what he is and I like everything about him, so why should it matter? It doesn’t make Remus any less of a man...he’s much better human than some people that are supposed to be “whole”. It doesn’t define him. I mean, his lineage, his origins or his kin , as he often calls it, doesn’t define who he is, his actions do and as far as I’m concerned, he already proved himself to be what I love. ”

“How about the risks?”

“What about it? He’s not dangerous for being a werewolf and I wouldn’t be any safer with an ordinary boy, would I? The Elvian grass knots are missing...have you seen them?”

Snape flickered his wand and the glass bottle came floating to her hand. 

“Forgot to put it back after re-stocking.”

Tonks nodded and wrote it down in her parchment.

“Your mind works in strange ways Nymphadora”

“Not really. I like to think openly and I think everyone deserves a chance.”she smiled “I've  got it...” she added rolling up her parchment “ I’ll get going or I’ll be late to my lessons with McGonagall. Don’t stay in here too long Severus, there are no windows and surely, breathing all those fumes for long is going to mess you up. See you!”

Tonks left the room noisily as she tripped on another wooden bucket on her way to the door. Snape sighed and crossed his arms. Nymphadora Tonks was one peculiar creature.

After a few minutes, the boy picked up his things and headed out of the room. The afternoons were growing colder as autumn progressed and winter approached and most students prefer to spend their time in their common rooms or in  a warm study rooms, so the corridors were mostly deserted as Snape crossed through them. His peace and quite was broken by a loud voice that called on him as he passed by the trophy room.

“Hah! I knew it was Snivellus...hey mate!”

Snape stopped in his tracks and turned to face his caller: James Potter sood at the door grinning with a dirty piece of cloth in his hand.

“Oi...hey, Snivellus!” Sirius greeted peeping from over James’s shoulder “What are you doing here so suspiciously?”

“Don’t assume everyone is like you, Black.” Snape said annoyed.

“Fair enough..”

“What are you doing?”

“Serving detention…”

“Again?”

“Well...it’s not our fault that Filch has such a bad sense of humor.” James laughed. 

“What did you do this time?”

“We turned the corridor in the fourth floor into an ice rink.” Sirius grinned “We were having fun until he showed up.”

“I see Lupin isn’t here…”

“Moony is too clever to be doing stupidities with us...most of the times…” Sirius laughed “he did give us the spell though.”

“Were you potioning with Tonksie?”

“Potioning can’t be a real verb, Potter…”

“As long as you understand, you know what I mean.”

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose and shrugged.

“Yes, I was. We were working in some healing potions. Why?”

“Alright..I’m going to use this opportunity to address this matter…” Sirius said  putting his arm around Snape. The slytherin seemed obviously disturbed by the physical contact.

“I just need to know...are you...pursuing my cous?”

Snape snorted. He knew Sirius and his friends were thick heads, but to think he’d have any remote attraction to Nymphadora Tonks was over the wall.

“No…”

“Is she fancying you?”

“No”

“Do you intend to fancy her?” 

“No. I’m not that desperate. ..” Snape growled pushing off Sirius’s arm “Stay assured, the Hufflepuff fool is all Lupin’s. We just work together.”

“Ah well… we just have to make sure. Remus is a little shy and all, but I know his feeling for my cous are real…and honestly, Remus deserves it …”

 

Snape was amazed of how blind these Gryffindors could be. Lupin and Tonks have been together for a few months already and they made a pretty sickening mushy couple with the looks they gave each other. If he’d been able to see through that, how was that their close friends couldn’t?

“Talking about Moony!” James grinned “hey, mate!”

Lupin walked down the stairs and smiled at his friends. He seemed quite energetic and he was holding a book under his arm. 

“From all things I expected to find when I came around, you chatting with Severus instead of properly cleaning was the last of them.” Lupin chuckled “Hello, Severus…”

“Hello, Lupin.”

“What were you discussing?”

“Well ….we…” Sirius began, but was promptly interrupted by Snape.

“Black and Potter were hoping to get my my vows on swearing not to pursue Nymphadora in any romantical aspect. Something unnecessary…”

“They ...what?”

“They wanted to be sure that I wasn’t competition for her affections “

Lupin’s eyes widened and he wasn’t sure if he should be mad at his friends for being idiots, or laugh at the situation since Snape was more than aware about Tonk’s and his allegations.

“Sirius…”

“Ah, come on Moony. We are trying to help. You know my cous spends most her time either with you or with Snivellus. We wanted to make sure that there wasn’t something...going on under the table…”

“What am I supposed to do with you?” Lupin sighed pinching the bridge of his nose. 

“Oh, come one , Moony...aren’t you happy though?” James grinned “Now you’re sure that Snivellus isn’t after Tonksie. You have your path free to go and ask her out…”

“Right...ask her out…” Lupin replied rubbing the back of his head “I will consider that…”

“You have to  man up, Moony. “ James chuckled “Tonksie isn’t as pretty as Evans, but hey...she’s not bad and boys are starting to notice it. “

“You’d need to have a very messed up taste to like someone like her…” Snape snorted. 

Lupin frowned at Snape and sighed before turning back at Sirius and James.

“You two..go back and finish that or you won’t get out of your detention before christmas.”

“Always so responsible…” 

“We’ll see you later in the dorms. Think of what we said!”

Sirius and James went back into the trophy room leaving Lupin and Snape alone in the corridor. THe Slytherin cleared his throat and resumed his walk, followed by Lupin. The two boy walked a few corridors in silence.

“Sorry about that…” Lupin sighed “Sirius and James can talk too much..”

“I am aware of that and I’ve learned to ignore most of what they blabber. It’s not too hard...I’ve got plenty of practice…”

“You...you’re not talking about Dora, are you?”

“Who else? I’ve been tempted to  cast a silencing spell on her at times…”

Lupin chuckled.Tonks often complained about Snape’s obsession of working silently and she would often cause a fuss just  to see him annoyed.

“You know she does it to bother you, right?”

“Being childish and fool? I’m not stupid. I know...” Snape said shaking his head “I really can’t understand your taste, Lupin…”

“You don’t need to…”

Snape nodded. The two walked another two corridors before Snape bid him farewell and headed to the dungeons. Alone, once again, Lupin considered where he should go; Tonks was still with McGonagall for at least an hour more, so maybe he should head to the library. The boy made a turn and came face to face with professor McGonagall.

“Mr. Lupin...watch where you’re going!”

“I’m sorry professor, I didn’t see you there..”

“Well, that’s clear. What are you doing wandering around the corridor alone?”

“I...intended to go to the library, professor…”

“To the library? On a friday night...mm as expected of you, Mr. Lupin. Young, handsome and studious. A model student indeed…” McGonagall said patting his arm suggestively.

“I beg you pardon…”

Lupin frowned. Something wasn’t quite right and he suddenly realized what it was.

“Very funny, Dora. Turn back before someone sees you…”

A soft giggle echoed in the hallways and Tonks amused figure appeared where McGonagall had once stood.

“Oh dear, you should have seen you face…” she laughed loudly “Was I too bold? What gave me away?”

“The attitude, for starters…” he said shaking his head “but I got a hint of your perfume when you grabbed my arm…”

“Ah, darn...there has to be a way to fool that nose of yours…”

Lupin rolled his eyes but smiled nevertheless. 

“Don’t you ever let Sirius know that you can do that…” Lupin chuckled “It’d be a disaster…”

“You have my word! I won’t tell him…” she laughed locking her arm through his “So...did I do a good McGonagall…?”

“All good until you tried to seduce me…” 

“Ah, never been hit on by an older woman, have you?” Tonks said wagging an eyebrow at him. 

“No...only by a devilish young lady”he replied tapping her nose.

“Oh...you like them younger? Who would have thought…”

Tonks wrinkled her forehead and, to Lupin’s surprise, the girl shrunk and turned into a younger version of herself with pigtails. 

“How about that?”

“Dora…” Lupin laughed “As adorable as you may look. I won’t be kissing a 5 years old child.

“Okay, okay..” she chuckled turning back to her teenage version “But you owe me a kiss, young man.”

“I’m delighted to oblige…”he smiled leaning in to kiss he.

They spent a few seconds into the kiss before Lupin had to cut it off abruptly.Someone was coming, he could hear the distant voices and and the faint footsteps growing closer. 

“What?” Tonks said confused. 

“Someone is coming...this  way.”

Lupin grabbed her hand a pushed her into one of the empty classrooms. The two leaned against the door holding their breath as the peeked through the slith of the door. The approaching people turned out to be Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall and Lupin noticed that the headmaster was holding something. It wrapped in a dark red cloth, but he could tell it was an square object.

“Albus...is it a good idea to keep this thing in the castle? We don’t know what it is and might be a risk for the students.”

“My dear, Minerva.  I already verified it, and it has no Dark Magic attached to it. It is safe to assume that it won’t represent any danger to our students, however, Voldemort is after this  and there’s no safer place for it be hidden than here.” 

“I understand that, Albus, but…”

“It will be fine. The box will remain hidden and no student shall find it, Minerva…”

Lupin frowned curiously wondering what could that box be; suddenly, he felt a slight twitch beside him. Tonks was rubbing her temple and all color from her face had suddenly faded. He automatically raised his hand  to cup her face; her skin was icy cold.

“Dora…” he whispered and she grabbed his wrist with a look of pain. 

Dumbledore and McGonagall’s voices began to fade until he could no longer hear them. Tonks breathing was heavy, but little by little, the color raised back to her face and the heat returned to her body.

“Dora…?”

“I’m sorry...I’m fine, now. I don’t know what happened…” she muttered “I’m okay. I didn’t meant to worry you. Were they McGonagall and Dumbledore?”

“Yes…” Lupin replied helping the girl up.

“Did you catch what they said? I couldn’t...hear clearly…”

Tonks didn’t want to worry Lupin more than he already was, but at the time it had been like if a thousand voices had began to whisper in her ears endlessly. SHe heard nothing than ghost voices saying words in a language that made no sense.

“Some of it…” Lupin replied “Are you sure you’re okay? I can take you to Madam Pomfrey…”

“I am fine, silly. It was nothing...don’t worry.” she smiled at him “Let’s get to the library. If you want me to feel better then give me a cuddle…”

Lupin smiled, but he couldn’t help but feel the ghosts of worry haunting his mind. 


	28. Among secrets and jokes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On request, I've made a fancast sheet for people who would like a visual reference. Now, the original cast for the HP film is great, but considering that my fanfiction is an au, we need a younger version of everyone. You can see it on here:  
> http://afaithy.tumblr.com/post/182695568319/so-an-anon-asked-for-some-real-people-references

"Enjoy life. There's plenty of time to be dead."  
— Hans Christian Andersen

Tonks dropped her books noisily on the table making a few of the other students-including Snape- turn their heads to them and glare. The thud have made Sirius, Peter and James stop in the middle of their paper ball war and Lily and Lupin raise their heads from their essays.  
“Gee...having a bad day, Cous?” Sirus said hesitantly.  
He wasn’t sure if his questions would trigger a violent reaction, but Tonks stared absently at her book and then, out of sudden, dropped her head against the table with a loud bang.  
“You’re going to get dumber if you keep hitting your head like that…” Snape said turning back to his book.  
“You were the one who said…” she replied banging her head again “that I had a hard head…”  
“You’re trying to prove me wrong?”  
“You wish I was…”  
“Are you alright, Tonks?” Lily asked softly.  
“She has a headache…” Snape explained “She  
has the habit to hit her head whenever she’s got one. The last time she almost broke one stall of potion ingredients in Slughorn’s office...”  
“First...it was an accident; second I tripped…”  
“While banging your head against the shelf…”  
“Do you want me to get you a pain potion?” Lupin asked.  
“Already had one…” Tonks sighed “Stole it from your stock, Severus, hope you don’t mind. “  
“You never ask anyway. Did you take the right one though?”  
“For the record...I know how to read…”  
Sirius slid to her side and rested his hand on her forehead.  
“No fever...and it’s not even close to full moon…”  
“Probably is hormonal…” Snape said absently.  
“Mind you...it’s not hormonal…” Tonks glared him “I just had a bad night of sleep…”  
“Roommates fault, maybe?” James suggested “I had hard times trying to fall asleep the first few nights with Sirius’s snores…”  
“I don’t snore!”  
SIrius glared indignantly at James and his friend laughed.  
“Oh, whatever…”Tonks replied resting head on her hand. The sleeve of her robe fell down and Lupin’s sharp eyes caught on something immediately. A faint bruise traced along her arm like tendrils that wrapped around her pale skin.  
“Dora...what happened to your arm?”  
“What?” she replied looking at her arm “Oh...I don’t know. I suppose I must have...hit something when tripped earlier or something. Don’t worry it’s nothing…”  
Lupin knew that Tonks wasn’t lying when she told them that she didn’t know. If she’d known, the girl would have morphed the thing before he had even seen it.  
“Are you sure you’re in shape to go to Hogsmeade?” Lily asked “You could stay and nap…”  
“Ah...no,no. I want to go. I can use the distraction…”  
“Yes! Have Moony give you a tour around, right Moony?” Sirius grinned.  
“What?”  
“Yes, not a bad idea. He can take you to that book store he likes so much…” James agreed “You both like books!”  
Lupin covered his face with his hand; he saw Tonks frown puzzled and heard Snape let out a snort. His friends were really dense.  
“Are you trying to get rid of Remus so that you can go and cause mischief?”  
“What? Of course not…” Sirius began but he was stopped by a slap on his back from James “I mean...YES, you know old Moony...he’s always such a sport-spoil sometimes. Do us a favor an keep him busy for while, would you?”  
“Busy? Well I have a couple things I could entertain him with…” Tonks smiled and Lupin had to keep himself from laughing at the disgusted face that Snape had made.  
“Brilliant…”James approved “You do that…”  
“Alright. I guess I’ll leave this in my room and I’ll meet you outside.”  
“Don’t take too long!”

Tonks found Lupin waiting for her in the courtyard; the rest of their friends were nowhere to be found and she wondered if she had taken too long. The boy was sitting at the edge of the fountain fidgeting with his sleeve, but he smiled at her when she stepped closer.  
“Sorry...did I...take too long?”  
“Nah, they’re playing matchmakers…” Lupin chuckled “If only they knew…”  
“Yeah, playing matchmakers now...mmm I don’t think it makes too much sense; but hey, we have a perfect excuse to hang out…”  
“Yes...but we’ll have to be clever…” Lupin grinned “They’re tailing us…”  
“Ah...buggers. Now how am I supposed to entertain you?”  
“Don’t worry. I know how to shake them off. Just follow my lead…”  
“Are we trusting your wolfish senses to keep us updated about our tails?”  
“Yes, they can be pretty useful at times…” he smiled he then offered her his arm “Shall we?”  
Tonks giggled and hooked her arm with his in a pompous gesture that reminded her to what her mum did sometimes. If they were going to be followed, she could put up a rather frustrating act to their nosy friends.  
“Are they always so interested in your love life?” Tonks asked him with a silent chuckled.  
“Hard to say. I haven’t had a “love life” until now…” he muttered back “Besides...Sirius has been up for the idea of setting me up with you since second year…”  
“What? I was eleven for Merlin’s sake…”  
“Exactly the reasoning I gave him at the time…”  
“Why was he so desperate? You’re not as flashy as he is, but believe me, if you weren’t handsome enough you wouldn’t have so many annoying admirers…”  
“No need to be jealous though. You know where my interests lay…”  
“On me of course…” Tonks laughed “Still, that doesn’t answer my question…”  
“Mmm..I think it’s my fault that they’re so...into it. I happened to mention my intentions of being eternally single in one occasion and well...for some odd reason they made it their life goal to prevent it.”  
“Why on heaven’s name would you do that? I mean.. Weren’t you a little….young to make such a life changing decision?” Tonks laughed.  
“Well, yes. That’s it. I was a kid, until then, I’d never really fallen in love and well… cursed with a condition. Even at a young age I’d already made myself the idea that there were no chances in this world that’d ever happen…”  
“Well, mister…” Tonks said poking his chest meaningfully “I need to change that mind of yours…”  
“Believe me...you already did. You told me I had a few admirers…” Lupin said looking at her “How many of them would still find me attractive if they knew my secret?”  
“Well, if they didn’t, they sure are idiots. Everyone knows there’s no better and most loyal partner in life than a wolf; and hence applies to...wolves of other kinds.”  
“You’re unique, Dora. Only you would come up with a positive look at this situation…”  
“You need to keep your mind open to all possibilities, that’s what my dad says…”  
“Remind me to Thank your parents for raising you…”  
“Hah, they’ll love that…”  
“Turn left...and don’t look sideways. Sirius thinks I don’t know he’s hiding behind that bush.”  
“A bush? Really...being a Marauder, I would have thought he’d come up with better ways of concealing himself.”  
“We haven’t learned disillusionment charms, yet. Thank god, or Sirius and James would be worse than now.”  
“I’m sure you could track them with your cute sniff though…”  
“I might, but it’d be harder to lose them if I can’t see them…”  
“If they want you to have a date, why are they following us around? Where did the privacy go?”  
“I’m sure they’re planning something. Sirius and James are quite predictable. They might try to do a few things to push you on me…”  
“A few things? Like what?”  
“Like…”Lupin suddenly pulled Tonks out of the way when a veil of charmed snowballs almost hit her and grabbed her arm before she could trip with box that had appeared out of pure magic “that. Not very discrete…”  
“You know your chaps too well.”  
“Huh. Sirius and James are terrible pranksters, but their sense of planning and strategy is a little…”  
“Sucky? That’s why they have you to make it up…”  
“Yes, usually I’m the one who comes up with plans… Turn right. We’re going to look around that shop for a bit.”  
“Mmm bookshop….I can’t complain. Are we going to drop a shelf on them?”  
“I know you’ll love that...but let’s not bother the shopkeeper, shall we?”  
Tonks and Lupin entered the book shop and began looking around the shelves innocently until they ended in the furthest shelf from the window.  
“Do you think they’re going to come in?” Tonks asked peeking from the side of the shelf. She caught a glimpse of three heads peeking from the window.  
“They will, if we don’t come out in a while. We will wait 5 minutes before moving to the next shelf. They’ll grow bored.”  
“This is fun. It’s almost like doing spy work…”  
“I’m sure you’ll do greatly, considering you’re a metmorphmagus…” Lupin chuckled “That’s the next part of the plan to shake them off…”  
“Oh?”  
“There’s a festival taking place in the Town’s Plaza. There are lots of people, so we will get into the crowd. You can morph into someone else and I’ll transfigure myself to look different. That way we can lose them…”  
“Hah, brilliant. I think I’ve got the perfect person in mind…”  
“I know that look.”  
“You do?”  
“It the patented Black look when you’re up for mischief…” Lupin’s lip curved in a smiled “You know they can’t see us now. I could probably kiss you…”  
“I didn’t take for someone who took risks…”  
“I’m not...but I’m highly tempted. Your bad influence…”  
“Ah, bugger. Then...just a small peck…”  
Tonks stood on tiptoes and gave him a short but meaningful kiss that was interrupted by the ring of the doors bell as it opened.  
“Their tailing is going to be counterproductive…” Tonks said rolling her eyes and letting go of him.  
“Don’t worry, they’ll be gone soon…” Lupin began counting until 10 and then led Tonks outside.  
They were met by a gust of chilly upcoming winter’s wind. The wind sent a bunch of lilac locks out of Tonks’s hood and she began to giggle trying to tuck them in. Lupin held her hood and methodically brushed the messy hair behind her ear.  
“Thanks. This wind is so bad for hair…”  
“I would put the thing down if it wasn’t for our little followers…” he smiled “Time to lose them. Follow me…”  
Just as Lupin had predicted, the Town’s Plaza was crowding with people: villagers, visitors and students. The place had been beautifully decorated with fairy lights and autumn garlands; the air smelled of roasted nuts, butterbeer and pumpkin tarts and the sound merry music mixed with lively chatting and laughs broke the quietness of the place. Lupin held Tonks's hand in a firm grip and ventured into the sea of people. It was easy for him to move around since he was quite tall, but to Tonks, who was quite small, it was a little challenging no to get apart from him. They pulled her closer and leaned to whisper in her ear.  
“Time to put up your show…”  
Tonks smiled and, making sure nobody saw her, she morphed herself into McGonagall. Lupin stared at her bemused and shook his head. He had transfigured himself into a slightly older and very respectful gentleman.  
“Seems you suspected what I was going for..” Tonks said in an uncharacteristically cheery voice for McGonagall.  
“I had my guesses…” he chuckled and offered her his arm in a gallant manner “Shall we make our leave Minerva.”  
“Delighted…” she said in a more McGonagall like manner.  
They left their small hideout and walked solemnly through the crowd. They saw Sirius, James and Peter looking around confused; it was obvious that the boys were looking for them in the crowd and were failing terribly. A mischievous idea came into Tonks mind and she purposely bumped into SIrius.  
“Watch your way, Mr. Black…”  
“Sorry...Professor McGonagall?!” Sirius said with wide eyes.  
“You look surprised to see me…” Tonks said in her best impersonation of the stern Gryffindor head and she could sense Lupin cough by her side. “ You three are not plotting another of your mischieves, are you? I’m expecting proper behavior even if you’re not at the castle.”  
“We...were….of course not professor, I mean...yes...I mean….” James said slightly shocked about bumping to his teacher in a festivity “No, we’re not planning anything and yes, we’re behaving…”  
“Your hesitance has me dubious, Potter. You are rarely out of troubles...and I see you’re missing one. Where’s Mr. Lupin?”  
Lupin coughed once more on her side. He was obviously hiding a laugh.  
“Eh...he...is out…”  
“In a date!” Peter said and was elbowed by both Sirius and James.  
“A date? A proper lady I hope. I wouldn’t want that boy to be led into improper behavior considering he’s the only one to know the concept RULES among you four.”  
“She’s a good girl...don’t worry professor. They just need a little push...” Sirius grinned.  
“Now I see what you three are up to.” Tonks said sternly “Let me give you advice Black, Potter...Pettigrew. If you want the date to go well, you three should let them have privacy. Spying on your friend’s love life is improper…you wouldn’t want me to take points from Gryffindor for being nosy, would you?”  
“I...sorry, what?”  
“You heard me, Black. Let Lupin and his sweetheart enjoy their time in privacy. I’m sure there are other better things for you three to do…”  
“Y-y-yes, professor…”  
“Very well, shall we take our leave?Have a good day Black, Potter, Pettigrew…”  
Tonks gave the three boys a slight nod, as McGonagall usually did and walked off holding onto Lupin’s arm. The pair tried not break into a fit of laughs as the trio were still too shocked to react. They made sure to be as far away from the plaza before turning back into their original selves and making a turn into a less crowded area of town. Lupin led her through the woods until they reached the edge of the Shrieking Shack.  
“You’re brilliant…” Lupin laughed.  
“I’ve always been good on impersonations…” Tonks laughed as well “I hope they won’t be gossiping about the gentleman that was escorting McGonagall through town. She’s not even here...she told me she was going to be out of Hogwarts this weekend.”  
“Convenient. Now that we are more or less free of our tail, may I…?”  
Tonks laughed and pushed her hood off releasing her short bob of lilac hair and ruffled it a little. Lupin let out an approving nod; vibrant and non traditional colors fit Tonks the best, and he loved it.  
“Here’s a new gossip…” she smirked as she hugged him “Remus Lupin’s secret sweetheart is rebel with purple hair!”  
“McGonagall would be disappointed…” he laughed embracing her around her waist.  
“Mmm… I’ve got the feeling that she would actually approve.”  
Lupin and Tonks chuckled and leaned to lock their lips. It was sweet kiss that seemed to warm each muscle in their bodies despite the piercing winds. They broke apart after a couple minutes and each other.  
“That should do for all the ones we’ve missed…” Tonks chuckled “Not that I mind making up for the ones that are yet to be missed…”  
“That makes us two…” he answered caressing her face. Tonks hand automatically moved to hold his.  
“So, what are you going to tell them about this date?”  
“That it was fun and that if, it’s even possible, I might be more in love now…”  
“You’re a romantic…” she laughed “but I can relate. Where do we go now?”  
“I seem to remember a certain place that your parents suggested…”  
“You didn’t owl my dad asking about it, did you?” Tonks laughed and when the boy smiled she broke into laughs “Oh my dear niffler...you did!”  
“Your dad was quite helpful with advice…” Lupin chuckled “I had no idea that your parents had been so secretive…”  
“They had to...the Blacks would have never accepted my dad…”  
“And we are here being secretive for a silly bet…”  
“Hey, better that than hiding from my or your family, right?”  
“I suppose…”  
“Come on...show me the way will you?” Tonks said kissing his cheek.  
The boy smiled and nodded, but as they were about to walk away, he stopped in his tracks and turned to look behind him. He could swear he had heard the sound of the shrubs shuffling and, for a minute, he thought that SIrius and company had caught on them; but he couldn’t perceive any familiar presence besides Tonks.  
“Remus? Are you alright?”  
“Yes...I just thought …” he said but shook his head “I must be imagining things. It’s nothing; let’s go…”  
Luping took Tonks’s hand with a small smile and began to led her back to town, but the uneasiness he’d felt earlier stuck with him the rest of the date.

***  
“So we stumbled with McGonagall and…you’re not going to believe it, I think she might have been in a date, too.”  
A few hours after he had returned to Hogwarts with Tonks and after he’d given her a proper goodbye, Lupin was sitting in the Gryffindor common room surrounded by the rest of the Marauders plus Lily Evans. Lupin almost choked with his tea at the mention of McGonagall and her “date”.  
“A date?” Lilya said surprised “McGonagall?”  
“Yup..she was all cosy with that gentleman” James said with a smile “Who sees professor McGonagall in that huh?”  
Lupin was having a really hard time trying to hide his laughter.  
“But we can talk about that later…” Sirius brushed off “Moony...spit it out. How was it today?”  
“Pardon me?”  
“You know what I’m talking about...spill out details of that date?” Sirius demanded throwing him a cushion.  
“Yeah, did you tell her you fancy her? YOu know hugged, held hands...snogged…?” James said wagging his eyebrows.  
“Eh…”  
Lupin was having a lot of trouble trying not to laughs his brains out. THe truth was, there had been a lot hugs, a lot of holding hands and definitely a lot of snogging, but he wasn’t going to tell them that.  
“It was alright…” Lupin managed to say “Very pleasant. We looked through some books, then around the plaza and we spent most of the time in a small teahouse in the outskirts of the town. I had a really nice view…”  
“Wait...just that?” Sirius and James snapped.  
“Weren’t you going to...tell her how you felt?” Peter asked.  
“I...I suppose I didn’t find the proper time?”  
“Mate...you were with her the whole afternoon...how is that remotely possible?”  
Lupin shrugged and Sirius spread over the couch annoyed and disappointed. Lupin let out a soft chuckle and all of the presents turned to him with an incredulous.  
“Sorry...it’s just…” he tried to recover his composure, but he was having a rough time doing it. The afternoon with Tonks had definitely left him in a far too good mood and he couldn’t stop grinning for any small thing “I don’t know why you’re all so into it….”  
“Because….because….it’s you, Moony. You won’t care, so we have to care for you!” James stated as if it was obvious and Lupin rolled his eyes.  
“Whatever...I’m a little tired. I guess I’ll be heading off to bed first…”  
Lupin headed to the stairs that led to dorm listening to James and Sirius mumble something about a change of plans and he chuckled. Things would be much easier if only they knew, but then again, even if he was in the losing side of the bet, he still had three more years to win it, so he wasn’t going to tell them.  
They’d have to figure it out themselves.


	29. Tourmaline

"But shouldn't all of us on earth give the best we have to others and offer whatever is in our power?" 

—  **Hans Christian Andersen**

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Winter arrived with a thick veil of blizzard and chilly winds that could freeze the largest man to the bone. According to

Hagrid, this was the coldest winter he’d seen in all his years as a game’s keeper and most of the students and teachers had to agree.  It wasn’t unexpected that most people were signing up to spend Christmas in their homes instead of the freezing castle grounds.

Unlike the previous years,  Tonks would be spending Christmas with her family; the invitation was warmly extended to her friends who had immediately agreed or -in Snape’s case- accepted by default. Therefore, a  group of five Gryffindors, one Slytherin and one Hufflepuff identifiable by their scarves were climbing up the hill that led to Tonks’s house after a very amused Ted Tonks.

“Dora...watch it. The last time you ran around this road with snow it ended badly for you…” Ted laughed.

“It wasn’t that bad...a broken wrist doesn’t compares to other accidents I’ve got…”

“Are you really that incapable of staying in your feet for more than 5 minutes?” Snape said frowning.

“Ah...well, I’ve done for an hour. That counts right?Ooop…” 

Tonks barely missed falling down the hill when she stepped on a frozen rock. 

“I’m surprised you’re still alive…”

“So I am…” Tonks laughed “Luckily, my mum is really good a healing…”

“All this snow is so pretty…” Lily said looking around “Is it like this every year?”

“We got early snowfall this year…” Ted admitted “but this is how it looks pretty much all the time.”

“If it wasn’t for the melting spells around the house...we’d have snow all over mum’s flowers…”Tonks laughed “Of course she wouldn’t let that happen…”

“Grogorian Trumpets are very sensitive to cold…” Snape approved.

“Exactly what she said…” 

“Your parents are here, too, Remus…”Ted said patting the boy on his back.

“Oh, they didn’t tell me they’ll be coming…”

“We invited them to spend Christmas with us.  You know Dromeda and Hope seem to enjoy each other’s company way too much…” Ted chuckled; he then lowered his voice a litle and muttered into Lupin’s ear “ Especially now that they have a certain topic to discuss…”

Lupin laughed shyly as he caught Tonks’s arm before she fell after being hit by a snowball thrown by James. 

“Alright kids...I know it is extremely tempting to throw snowballs at each other right now, but let’s make it to the house first, shall we? You’ll be free to bombard each other with snow after Dromeda greets you...”

 

Tonks house was warm and cosy and everyone found the decoration of the house extremely charming. It was so neatly done that it could have rivaled the decorations from the Great Hall. Andromeda Tonks was busy with  Hope Lupin preparing a christmas wreath in the “muggle way” and by the looks of it, the witch was having lots of fun arranging random ornaments between the branches; Lyall Lupin was sitting in a corner with a mug of hot cocoa in his hand and laughed at her wife’s observations on how muggles used something called “glue” to stick the ornaments in place.

“Mum, dad!” Lupin smiled.

“Oh….Remus, you’ve arrived!” Hope smiled.

“Hello, son…” Lyall smiled walking to pat his son on his back “Oh, hello boys...I think I see a few new faces; I’m Lyall and that’s my wife Hope, we’re Remus’s parents…”

“Hello! I’m Lily Evans and this is my friend Severus Snape. It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.” Lily smiled “Oh...can we help with the wreaths? I haven’t done one since my grandmother passed away.”

“Oh, you know wreaths?” Hope asked.

“Lily is a muggle born..” Lupin explained.

“Oh, darling...of course you can help.” Andromeda smiled “Nymphadora dear, do you want to join?”

“Ehr...no...I don’t want to break anything…” Tonks said looking at the ornaments “they look fragile…”

“It’s nothing that a spell can’t fix, Nymphadora.”

“Eh...well, I suppose I can try…”

“Good. Boys, there are biscuits in the counter if you’re hungry and Ted can serve you hot chocolate…”

“Thank you Ms. Tonks…” The group said in unison. 

“Thanks Andy…” Sirius grinned. 

The group dispersed. Each person focusing on their own deeds; Lily and Tonks were working on their wreaths with the help  of Snape and Lupin; while James, Sirius and Peter sat in the counter chatting with Ted and Lyall as the ate the oat biscuits. The house was soon filled with laughter and the occasional sound of breaking glass followed by a miserable apology from Tonks. 

“That looks lovely, Tonks.” Lily smiled.

“Well, thank Remus for that…” Tonks chuckled “He’s better at this than me…”

“Anyone is better than you for this…” Snape stated matter of factly.

“Thank you for reminding me how incompetent I am. Always the lovely friend…” Tonks rolled her eyes.

“You know he means well..” Lily laughed.

“Of course I know. Besides, you can’t spend hours in a dungeon brewing potions and not grow immune to his charming way to show affection.”  Tonks said sticking her tongue at Snape and throwing a bunch of thrimed pine branches at the Slytherin.

”I could say the same about your idiocy.”

“I like you, too, Severus…” Tonks said rolling her eyes and winked at Lupin in a way the he understood as “ _ but not more than I like you, Remus…” _

“Who said I liked you?”

“Actions over words, my dear Severus. Actions over words…”Tonks laughed “Besides...it’s me. How could you not like me?”

“How do you stand her, Lupin?”

“I find her confidence pretty adorable, actually…” 

“Of course you do” Lily laughed “Among other things…”

“Yes, among other things…”

“Well, Remus is adorable, too.”

“Is he?” Sirius barked from the counter.

“Yes...a thousand times more adorable than you, Sirius!”

“And I might agree to that…” Andromeda laughed.

“Hey...I’m supposed to be your favorite cousin!”

Tonks exchanged looks with her mother and both laughed. 

“Don’t feel bad, Sirius.” Ted chuckled “The fact that you’re not adorable doesn’t mean you’re not their favorite cousin…”

“No need to be jealous, Pads…” James laughed loudly.

“Who said I was…?”

“You obviously are…” Peter laughed.

Sirius rolled his eyes and punched both of his friends on the arm.

“You two wait. I’ll make you pay for that when we have that snowball fight…” Sirius growled “Remus...are you with them or with me?”

“I’m not sure about that, Sirius…”

“Pads...Remus is obviously on our side. He’s the one who is  _ more _ adorable than you…”

“Good point. Well...I can kick your arses on my own…”

“We can be on your team, Sirius.” Ted laughed “what do you say, Lyall?”

“I shouldn’t be going against my son; but I haven’t had a good snowball fight since I was in Hogwarts. Count me in…”

Lupin sighed and chuckled as he passed another ribbon to Tonks.

“Boys will always be boys…” Hope smiled sitting next to her son “No matter the age…”

“ You tell me…” Andromeda sighed “Why Hy do you think, Nymphadora turned out the way she is?”

“Mum...what’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know what I mean, Nymphadora. By the way...when we are done with this...I want you to try on the dress I bought you for the christmas party.”

“Mum…not a dress!”

“It’s tradition in the Tonks’s family; you know that. Ladies  _ wear _ a dress for Christmas…”

“Is it really?” Lily said surprised “I didn’t bring any dress!”

“Ah...don’t worry, sweetheart. I’m sure we can find one of Nymphadora’s dresses that will suit you. Most of them are as good as new…”

“And why is wearing a dress a tradition in the Tonks’s family?” Hope asked curiously.

“Ah, that would be my late grandmother’s fault...” Ted replied with a melancholy smile “she was into that sense in which proper ladies don’t wear trousers line, but naturally there was no way my sisters would wear dresses in this age...flappy skirts, capes and well, robes are common in the magical community, but not among muggles. I’m sure you see what I mean Hope…”

“Yes, I think my nana had the same line of thought…”

“I bet she did. Eventually the ladies in my family came to a compromise. For especial holidays such Christmas, all the women in the Tonk’s family would dress as a proper lady and wear a dress. It became sort of a family tradition...”

“Which is a fair compromise. I don’t see what’s so bad about a dress. Why do you hate them that much, Nymphadora?”

“ I don’t hate them, mum…” Tonks pouted “I just don’t think dresses suits me. It’s easy for you to say when you are always looking good in dresses, mum.”

“Oh, but you surely would look lovely in a dress…” Hope smiled “Don’t you think so, Remus?”

Remus choked in his hot chocolate. He heard a wave of laughter from the counter as he coughed.

“Ah...I think Remus would  _ love  _  to see you in a dress, cous…”Sirius barked.

“I bet you ten galleons on that…”

“I don’t fancy losing, thank you…” Peter laughed.

“You three shut it…” Lupin said annoyed glaring at his friends.

A general laugh filled the room followed by the sound of another broken ornament that Tonks picked up with a pout.  Andromeda took the thing and with a smooth wave of her wand, it was repaired in a blink. 

“I should get ready to prepare dinner.” Andromeda said getting up and hanging the finished wreaths with a wave of her wand.

“Oh, let me help you with that…” Hope smiled. 

“That would be nice, You boys go out and burn out all that sugar you’ve just eaten…”

“We’re growing boys, Andy. We need the sugar…” Sirius bark laughed “So that we can grow big and handsome…”

“ Is he always like this?” 

“Yes…” Tonks, Lily, Lupin and Snape answered in unison.

 

A few minutes later, the boys had gone out to do their promised snowball war with the addition of two very amused fathers. Snape refused to take part in childish games and ended up being the judge of the battle while Tonks and Lily watched from the window of the Hufflepuff’s room.

“Boys can be really idiotic, don’t you think?” Lily laughed.

“I guess that’s a trait for the male gender…”Tonks replied digging into her wardrobe and pulling out some dresses “ you prefer red or blue?”

“You have a lot of dresses…” Lily said impressed.

“Mum likes buying me dresses…” Tonks shrugged “I think this one would look nice..”

Tonks passed Lily a red and pink simple A-line dress with a puffy tulle skirt. It was simple but elegant and cute. 

“Oh, that’s nice…” Lily smiled “Which is the one you’re meant to wear…”

“Oh...this one…” Tonks said lifting a teal colored dress “mum has been into buying me teal colored clothes recently. What color of hair should I use…?”

Lily was one of the few people that had learned of Tonks morphing abilities, however, she didn’t know that Tonks could change her looks to look completely like someone else. As far as Lily was concerned, Tonks could only change her hair color.

“ What do you think of...this?” 

The younger girl frowned as she focused. Her short lilac locks grew longer until they reached her mid back with soft waves. The lilac began to fade into a gradient of burgundy.

“I still can’t get used to you doing that.” Lily said wide eyed “It’s really wicked and...I like that color. Matches the teal well…”

“Great. Then...this will be tonight’s look…”

Tonks threw herself on to the bed and stared at the ceiling abscently. Lily dropped by her side over her stomach  and rested her chin over her hand.

“So...how are things with Remus?” Lily asked “Dorcas seems to have put off for a bit. She isn’t bothering you anymore, is she?”

“She enjoys glaring at me…” Tonks replied “but since Remus found about her little blusterings, she’s left me alone. Remus probably told her something...but now that I think about it, I’ve never asked him what?”

“He likes you…”

Tonks chuckled and said nothing.

“So you’re up to Jame’s bet about Remus liking me in a dress?”

“That’s hardly a bet. Honestly...and you can trust me here, you could be wearing a duck costume and he’ll think you look beautiful. He really, really likes you…”

“A duck costume huh? That’s a new one...” 

Tonks laughed remembering the time she’d turned her face into a duck beak  and how Lupin had, as gentlemanly possible, said that even with a beak he still thought she was lovely. 

“Well, we’ll see what he thinks about this condemned dress...” Tonks laughed “What about you and James, huh?”

“W-what about him?”

“You two seem to be getting along…”

“Potter is an idiot…” 

“An idiot you seem to like…”

“I don’t…” she began, but sighed softly “Maybe a little…”

“You know, mum hung some mistletoe around the house. You should drag him under one and kiss him…”

“What are you saying Tonks?” Lily said alarmed “Are you planning to do that with Remus?”

“Maybe I will…” Tonks giggled. Kissing Lupin under the mistletoe wouldn’t be hard, as far as she knew she could kiss him without it anyway. 

“You’re mental…” Lily laughed “but I think Remus would enjoy that…”

“Maybe. We should dress up before my mum comes up…” 

“Alright...can I arrange your hair?”

“My hair?”

“Yes! I’ve always wanted to do it, but my sister wouldn’t let me touch her hair…”

“Oh, okay. I don’t mind….”   
“I promise to leave you so pretty that Remus will fall on his face when he sees you…”

“Frankly, that sounds more like me” Tonks laughed.

“You never know…” Lily said with a smile “You..never...know…”

 

***

After an strenuous snowball battle that was possible the most epic one they four Gryffindors had found themselves entangled in, they men had entered the house red cheeked, exhausted and soaking. Lyall and Ted had proved that age wasn’t a limitant when it came to throwing a good snowball jinx. 

“Ah...look at you all…” Andromeda said disapprovingly “Get yourselves cleaned up before dinner, would you?”

“I take you two had fun…” Hope sair wrapping her arm around her son and looking at her husband with a smile.

“Remus has a gift for enchanting snowballs, dear…” Lyall laughed “I should be proud, but I was too busy trying not to get hit…”

“And who won?” Andromeda asked curiously.

“I’m afraid it was a draw. We were too tired to continue with the battle and also hungry…” Ted laughed “I’ll go put myself decent and I’ll come to help with dinner. Where did the girls go?”

“Getting dressed of course…” Andromed replied “I didn’t hear anything break, so I’m sure Nymphadora is doing alright…”

“You’re letting our daughter put on a dress... _ alone _ ? Honey, are you sure she won’t set it on fire just for an excuse no to wear it?” Ted laughed.

“There are more dresses if she tries, besides Lily is with her. I’m sure she would restrain her from doing such thing…”

“Ah...of course…”Ted chuckled “ Well, I’ll drag this horde of soaked boys with me. I don’t reckon you want to follow us, Severus?”

“I’ll stay. I might be of help to Mrs. Tonks…”

“Adorable, isn’t he? Alright...hush. Get yourselves dressed and don’t take too long.”

The boys headed upstairs after Ted and Lyall had performed a drying charm over their soaked clothes and after putting on a fresh set of clean clothes, Sirius and James began a noisy pillow battle that Lupin was trying to stop before the boys broke something. Unfortunately his reasoning and his efforts seemed to be failing terribly.

James and Sirius struggled seemed to come to halt when they heard voices coming from outside the room.  Lupin’s sharp hearing had caught on the soft steps followed by a loud crack and groan of despair that he was already very familiar with. His lips curved into a smile and all his interest in preventing his friends from doing something stupid faded away. 

“God, are you alright Tonks?”   
“I’m fine, I’m fine...and there I thought I was doing well in this dress for a change. It’s not even that long and somehow I always manage to get tangled in it…” Tonks said frustrated “At least I didn’t tear it...mum would kill me if I had…”

“The vase wasn’t that lucky, however…” Lily giggled. 

“Ah...that can be fixed and besides, it was a gift from my dad’s second cousin Arabella. Mum hates it. I think she purposely left it there to see when I would stumble with it and break it…”

“Nymphadora…?”

“Talking about the queen of fairies. Wotcher mum...don’t worry the dress is safe, but aunt Ara’s vase has seen been better days…”

“So you  _ finally _ broke it…” Andromeda said and Lupin could hear a soft hint of satisfaction “Oh, you two are looking lovely in those dresses. Very elegant and proper…”

“Thank you mum...Lily fixed up my hair. I think she had way too much fun with it…”

“Oh, hush. It looks lovely. I gave you those hairpins in our first Christmas together and I hadn’t seen you use them…”

“Well...it does look nice. It almost makes me look like a lady.” Tonks laughed.

“I approve it…” Andromeda nodded.

The fuss inside the boys room stopped when they heard a knock in the door and Andromeda asked them if they were ready.  Lupin glared at his friends with his professor like scolding look and James and Sirius exchanged looks guiltily. Several minutes later they opened the door to see the two girls waiting outside with frown. 

Lily looked very nice and proper in a red dress that matched her copper hair and green eyes; James had make and effort not drool over his new jumper; Sirius and Peter were too distracted with him to notice the awe in Lupin’s face.

To say he was charmed, would have been an understatement. He knew Tonks was a pretty; not like those high society  girls or princess like beauties,but beautiful as those ancient greek nymphs that exhaled life and strength, which was why he thought her name suited her perfectly. However, this was the first time that he saw his girlfriend in formal attire and he had to admit that he could see the Black aristocratic genes glowing under the burgundy hairdo and the teal long sleeve dress. 

As the group made their way down the stairs, Tonks pulled back a little too join Lupin at the back and linked her arm through his.

“You’re the only one I trust not to  drop me down the stairs. Keep me safe and sound would you?” she smiled.

“It’d be my pleasure…” he smiled “Do I need to say how incredibly beautiful you look right now?”

“So ...it seems James won his ten galleons?” Tonks smirked “You like me like this? Don’t I look too much unlike myself?”

“Not really. It’s more like...another face of you. Don’t get me wrong...I like you in any possible way…”

“Even if I morphed my nose into a pig snout or something?”

Lupin let out a soft chuckle, not wanting to attract his friends attention. 

“Even like that...as long as it is you…” 

“I’d say you’re mental…” Tonks laughed.

“Perhaps I am…” he then whispered in a softer voice “I might need to find some mistletoe later…”

“Ha..precisely what I was thinking.”

 

The night passed between laughs, games and jokes. Sirius had joined Ted in an improvised show of Carol singing that had everyone curled in their seats in a fit of laughter as the two began make up the lyrics of the Oh Realms of Glory. Tonks used the diversion to sneak to the kitchen for more juice and she almost dropped the bottle when two arms wrapped around her waist.  Luckily for her, Lupin had good reflexes or her mum would have come to check.

“I’ve been wanting to hug the whole evening…” he sighed “In times like this, I wish we hadn’t made that stupid bet…”

“Now, what would be the fun in that?” Tonks replied tapping his nose gently and kissing his cheek. “Good thing you showed up here or I wouldn’t know when to give you this…”

Tonks pulled out a wrapped package from her magical pocket and handled it to the boy with a smile.

“Merry Christmas, Remus!”

The boy smiled taking the present from her hands. It was a simple gift,a journal with leather cover that she’d asked her dad to find for her. It was charmed to have everlasting pages and it came with a magical quill that could be resized to fit inside the folds of the cover.

“I remember you mentioned your father had this notebook where he used to write all the notes of his researches...I thought it was time for you to have your own, too.”

“It’s wonderful, Dora...thank you!”

Lupin smiled brightly. Tonks was aware of Lupin’s inclination to the studies of Defense Against Dark Arts and other creatures, after all, at his fourteen years her boyfriend had already proven himself as knowledgeable as his dad was, and Tonks wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up being some sort of scholar. Unfortunately, his little condition would often lead him to think of himself as useless and worthless.

“No need to thank me, just remember to give me a little credit when you become a renowned researcher with tons of books and too much work to send me an owl...”

“You know that’ll never happen…”he said holding her hand “I happen to have something for you too…”

Lupin pulled out a small box from his pocket and put it on her hand.

“It might solve that...owling situation…”   
Tonks opened the box and found necklace  with a charm made of a deep bkack stone wrapped with silver wire in beautiful patterns that reminded her of Tolkien’s elves. It was simple and not as glamorous as other girls would have wanted, but she loved it.

 

“Sirius and James gave me the idea. They  got themselves this charmed mirrors that they could use to talk to each other when they were doing detentions separately. I found this stones when I was in Scotland. Dad told me they had great magical properties and it wasn’t hard to persuade professor Flitwick to teach me how to charm then into linked charms....” Lupin pulled out the pocket watch I had given him the previous christmas and I saw he had attached and identical stone to it “ I know you’ve been having nightmares and as much as I’d love to be with you at those times, I know I can’t. I’ve got the other pair. That way we can talk directly even if we’re not in the same place…”

“Remus...this is wonderful. I’ve got no words…”

“Honestly, this is a small thing compared to everything you’ve done for me this year…”he replied rubbing her hand with his thumb “Here I’ll fix it for you…”

Soon, the charm was hung around neck and she was smiling brightly at the simple yet meaningful item.

“I love it so much that I could kiss you, but no mistletoe in here…”

“I don’t really need mistletoe to kiss you…”he chuckled “No one is watching anyway…”

The kiss was short, but after a whole day surrounded by their friends and very limited contact with each other, the feel of each others lips, even if only briefly, was more than a joy for both teens. 

“Pumpkin juice?” she chuckled when he stepped back.

“Please…”

“What are you two doing her so suspiciously, huh?” James said with a smirk when both returned to the living room.

“Conversing over pumpkin juice about how Sirius should totally join the frog choir…” Tonks said sipping from her cup.

“Only if you want the poor frogs to die from his awful intonation...I’ll pity them…” Snape said.

“Aww...Snivellus, you’re breaking my heart…” Sirius said in dramatic voice “I know you meant to say that my voice is just too good to be put in a choir…”

Snape only glared at him and rolled his eyes.  

“Ted was in the Frog Choir…” Andromeda laughed “He used to sing me songs whenever I was in a foul mood with him…”   
“That’s adorable…”Hope laughed “Lyall would just pop up with a bunch of flowers if I was upset with him. Did Ted do it often?”

“Sometimes I’d just fake anger to have him sing…”Andromeda giggled.

“So that was why you’d suddenly be mad at me for things I didn’t even remember saying?” Ted asked with a frown.

“Ooops…” 

The two couples laughed. Tonks sat down  in the couch, next to Lupin and they exchanged looks. Their line of thought going to the same direction without knowing. Tonks wondered what sort of thing Lupin would do to ease her anger and the boy wondering the exact same thing.

“Ah...those times were lovely…” Andromeda said taking her husband’s hand “Even with all the difficulties we had…”

“What kind of difficulties?” Lily asked curiously.

“Starting by my sister-in- law wishing to hex me to my doom…” Ted chuckled in a tone that tried to sound jovial, but with a bitter aftertaste “But there was some sort of excitement about dating behind everyone’s back...I must admit…”

Ted beamed at Lupin with an amused grin and the boy could see where Tonks had gotten that characteristic wink of hers. 

“Oh...we did that for a while, too…” Hope laughed “when we started dating! Do you remember that Lyall?”

“How to forget it. I thought I had broken my back that time I slipped while trying to come out through the window…” Lyall laughed “I thinks it is part of any relationship to have that small phase of dating in secret…”

Lupin covered his face knowing far well that their parents were making fun of them in a very discrete and well played way.

“Tonksie was saying the other day that Remus had a secret lover…” Peter said cheerfully and this time it was Tonks who almost choked with her juice. Lupin had to pat her back as he looked at their parents in alarm.

He caught Andromeda covering her mouth in a modest laugh and Ted amused look, as Lyall brushed back his hair while looking at his wife.

“A secret lover!” Lyall said with a laugh “Well...that’s a new one…”

“I don’t have a  _ secret _ lover…” Lupin said and he saw his parents chuckle. 

Technically speaking, it wasn’t secret. Their family knew and Snape knew, so it wasn’t secret. He wasn’t entirely lying.

“That’s what I said…” Sirius said eating up a truffle “It’s Remus we’re talking about. He might be secretive about a lot of things, but Merlin...if there’s something he’s bound to be bad at...is handling girls and let’s not talk about a secret one!”

Lupin sighed in irritation and Tonks only giggled as she rubbed his back slightly amused. If only Sirius knew the truth.

“Oh, how come my boy is bad with girls?” Hope said 

“Well, not...bad. He’s just way too polite to do something like that…” James cleared up “You’re the good boy, Moony …”

“I’ll make no comments about that…” Lupin sighed drinking his juice. 

Everyone in the room laughed and Lupin smiled throwing a paper ball at Sirius grinning face. The rest of the evening proceeded in the same easy and enjoyable ambience and Tonks was happy to think that it’d been one of the best christmas she’d had.

 


	30. Tinneas Sidhe

 

  
"All interest in disease and death is only another expression of interest in life."    
— Thomas Mann

 

The Malfoy’s Manor was shadowed by a deathly silence that was only interrupted by the hard tapping of Bellatrix’s shoes against the fine marble tiles. She glared a two Death Eaters standing guard at a thick mahogany door and pushed it open. She wasn’t surprised to see her prospect of brother-in-law standing by the fireplace with an evident look of dismay. 

“Bellatrix has arrived, my lord.” Lucius said solemnly. 

Bellatrix let out a laugh at the man’s so  _ proper  _ and aristocratic tone.  She moved to the fireplace and bowed in front of Voldemort.  Voldemort sat tightly with Nagini wrapped around his shoulder while his pale hands were fidgeting with a small wooden box.

“My lord...I heard the news about the box…” Bellatrix said bitterly.

“Yes, it seems Dumbledore is clever than I would have thought…” Voldemort replied spinning the box in his hand “It was a dexterous move to have the box replaced with such a well done replica. No doubt he’s got an expert on magical items in his side, now…”

“An expert on magical items, my lord?”

“The details on the box Lucius, the binding spells even…” Voldemort replied and used his wand to make the box float in front of his face “They’re were very well mimicked. It could have even fooled me if not for the weakness of the seal. The person who prepared this fake was knowledgeable in the ancient magics. Not even Dumbledore himself is so well versed in this area…”

“Who…?”

“My dear Bellatrix….I seem to recall that your dearest sister married a scholar…?”

“That disgusting mudblood…” Bellatrix roared in hate “My lord you wouldn’t think he was capable of fooling us…?”

“ He was in the place the day the box was retrieved... “ Lucius reasoned “You saw him yourself, didn’t you Bellatrix? You even send those werewolves to chase after him…”

“It was a chance I could hardly let pass…” Bellatrix smiled devilish “Now I regret that I did not kill him in the place…”

“The real box was probably in his power…”

“I don’t reckon you little pet dogs caught him, did they Bellatrix?” Lucius asked with a smirk. 

“Sly mudblood knew how to run….” Bellatrix replied; the hatred was evident in her voice “Managed to run off into Hogwarts and got saved. Don’t worry my Lord...I will have him….”

“No rush, Bellatrix. If Ted Tonks made it to Hogwarts, that means the box is now in Dumbledore’s power…”

“My lord, and what will we do to retrieve it?” Lucius said.

“For now...nothing. Dumbledore has no idea of what he has gotten his hands on…and I wish to see what will happen next”

“My lord, with all due respect...could you tell us what is that box?”

“Bratty, Malfoy...you dare to question our lord…”

“I would never, but I am curious...as you probably are, Bellatrix.”

“Tch…”

“It is said...that the blood of a Nyaphe is kept inside that box. A token of the creature we are searching for…”

“Are you...sure, my lord? It sounds like...folkloric rubbish…” 

“Perhaps, my dear Lucius, but folk tales are often tied to truth. If there was a Nyaphe blood inside that box, not only we could track the creature, but it is said that the blood has...admirable properties…”

“Admirable, my lord?”

“Healing properties; power,...even immortality. Aren’t you interested?”Voldemort smirked throwing the fake box into the flames of the fireplace “the box will be on my hands eventually and then we will know if what has been told is truth or a made up fairytale.”

Lucius said nothing and Bellatrix snickered. She seemed amused; it was evident that the woman shared her lord’s excitement.

“My dear Bellatrix. Fenrir was here earlier…” Voldemort said changing of topic “he brought me some...interesting news…”

“What does the little pooch have to tell?”

“A rather fascinating information regarding your niece…” Voldemort now sounded amused “ She seems to be courting with werewolves now. Fenrir recognized the boy as one of  _ his children…” _

“The apple doesn’t fall to far from the tree, it seems…” Lucius smirked “First mudbloods, now half-breeds...what’s next? Muggles?”

“That child is no niece of mine…” Bellatrix eyes darkened “and with all fairness, she’s as related to me as she is related to dear Cissy…”

Lucius and Bellatrix exchanged glares.

“Enough…” Voldemort laughed “Fenrir is now interested in your little niece, Bellatrix. I wanted to let you know…”

“He can have her when I’m done with her; but the little mutt is tougher to get than I’d had anticipated. It doesn’t matter...it makes everything much more entertaining…”   
Bellatrix grinned into a wicked wolfish grin before bursting into a fit of mad,laughter. Her pride was still hurt by how a young 12 years old girl had managed to escape her hands unscathed last summer. The little mutt would get her punishment sooner or later.

 

***

January hit Hogwarts with blizzard storms and icicles. The cold weather unleashed an upsurge of disease that had most of the student body either in their beds or in the hospital wing. Classes had to be canceled since many of the teachers had fallen victim to the same disease; and the castle fell into even more desolate  state that it had been during the holidays. Sirius, Peter, James, Lily and even Snape had been among the fallen and, much to their dismay, ended up sentenced to an undetermined quarantine in their respective dormitories. 

Few students were still on their feet and, at the fear of contagion,Madam Pomfrey had given strict isolation instructions to keep the healthy away from the ill; consequently, the few healthy students had scattered and settled down in improvised sleep quarters in the library where they had been ordered to stay in and avoid leaving the place as much as possible. 

However, Tonks- who was among the healthy-, was in the Potioneer Room - or Snape’s lair as she liked to call it- stirring  the contents of a cauldron. With the amount of sick, the provision of healing potions was falling low and Tonks had offered to help out with the brewing since she had gotten top marks in both potions and healing draughts.  Madam Pomfrey had been a little skeptical at first, but after receiving the first batch of excellent quality potion as she had said herself, the mediwitch was more adamant to receive the girl's help. As a result, the small room of potions was currently busy with many potions that went from simple mixes to treat fever and cough, to more complex ones to aid in breathing and vomiting.

“I feel bad for being here and doing nothing while you seem so busy.” Lupin said from his seat across her.

Concerned about Tonks health, Lupin had been adamant about accompanying his girlfriend during the long hours of potion making that she’d auto imposed herself. The sense of duty and extreme kindness she showed was admirable, and it only made his affections to the girl grow, but the risks she took for it were still a little unnerving to him. Unlike him, who had a enhanced immune system as a result from his condition, Tonks was more or less vulnerable to whatever bug was floating in the castle air. At least, by staying by her side, he could keep an eye on her and take action if the situation called for it. 

“I’d offer to help, but my skills in potions are pretty bad…I’m sure Severus has commented you on it” Lupin said apologetically.

“Ha, he has. He still doesn’t understand how someone as clever as you can be such a troll for potions; but don’t worry about it. Your presence is enough help…” Tonks chuckled, and seeing the boy’s conflicted look she quickly added “but if you’re desperate to feel useful, the Anti-Shivering Serum is ready. You can help me bottle it up so that we can ask the house elves to send them to the hospital wing…”

“That’s something I, definitely, can do…” Lupin smiled. He picked up a box of empty glass vials and began to fill them with the finished potion. The liquid was impressively clear and book picture like “You are amazingly good at potions…”

“According to Severus, I am still an inept” she laughed “Believe me, I didn’t have the greatest start in potions. My first year was as bad as you can imagine. I was a total disappointment, considering I am the daughter of a potioneer, but...I just kind of found a reason to want to become better at it…”

“Really? What?” 

“That’s a secret I’ll tell you one day, I promise…” 

Tonks waved her wand and a set of crystal bottles floated to her hand from the ingredients shelf. Lupin watched her dazzled. He was used to Tonks being clumsy, a little childish and funny, but when the girl was really focused in something that she considered important,  it was almost as if she had a complete turn of personality. The joking spark would fade from her eyes, being replace by an air of seriousness and determination; her usual hesitant and clumsy moves, turned smooth and confident and everything in her exuded a “no wasting time” aura. It was fascinating, and in the past few days Lupin had decided that watching her brew potions was one of his favorite things.

“We’re running out of ginger root. We’ll need to restock…” Tonks said putting down the jar and lookin at him. As soon as her eyes locked with his, the usual cheery Tonks’s mask was back in place “What?”

“What do you mean?” 

Tonks chuckled shaking her head.

“You were looking so attentively at me...do I have something in my face?”

“No…” he replied a little embarrassed “I was just...admiring…”

“Admiring?”

“Yes, the way you work with potions...is...almost like watching a professional potioneer. It’s impressive…”

“You’re bias. My mum is much more impressive, and you have seen Slughorn at class? Well Slughorn is a little show off, so of course you have. You should watch Severus though. I’ve seen him multitasking and  _ that _ is impressive…”

“You sell yourself short. Have I told you that your modesty is really adorable?”

“Mum always said that modesty made ladies more likeable…” Tonks laughed “I guess she was right…”

Tonks checked the mix inside her cauldron and sighed. She flicked her wand once more and sent the jars and bottles back to the shelf as she moved to write down something in the free table.

“That’s a non verbal spell…” Lupin observed “You know, non verbal spells are pretty advanced magic…”

“Severus taught me how to do it. It isn’t that difficult compared to other spells, but I spent three months trying to perfect it or I knew he would hex me for making messes in his Sanctuary.”

Lupin nodded, but he was still impressed. Even Sirius and James who were very gifted in charms had serious problems when it came to non verbal spells. Lupin was pretty good at them, but he was sure that he wouldn’t have been able to handle them when he was on third year as Tonks. The girl really had talent for magic.

“Do you think Madam Pomfrey would allow me to go shopping?” Tonks said tapping her quill  against the table.“People keep getting sick and they don’t seem to be getting better. We make lots of relieving potions, but we are running out of ingredients…”

“I’m not sure how will she react to the idea of you going out of the castle. She was emphatic on the Quarantine thing…”

“I know, but we can’t afford to run out of ingredients...right?”

“Yes, you’re right on that…” 

Lupin sealed the last bottle of Anti-shivering serum and put it on the box. He walked to where Tonks was hovering over a piece of parchment and wrapped his arms around her waist. The girl was several inches shorter than him and it was easy rest his chin on her, currently, pale pink head. Tonks answered to the gesture by leaning against his chest and grazed his hands.

“Is that what’s upsetting you?” Lupin whispered.

“Why do you think I’m worried?” 

“You only go for pale colors when you are upset…” 

“Wow...when did we reach that point in the relationship where you can read my haircolor?” Tonks snickered. 

“You aren’t the only one  who is observant, Dora…” 

Tonks laughed. She turned to face him and pressed a kiss on his lips. 

“I’m alright, fusspot…”she replied tapping the boy’s nose “ I just wished there was more I could do to help”

“You’ve been brewing potions non stop, Dora. You are doing a lot already....”he said pulling the girl into a hug “There’s nothing we can do now, but let the experts take care of the rest. Madam Pomfrey will have everyone back on their healthy feet soon…”

Tonks nodded, she leaned into kiss the boy one last time before going back to the potion that was bubbling in the fire. 

Lupin’s prediction was right and several days later, the strange illness had disappeared as suddenly as it had began to spread. Lupin and Tonks both had earned 80 points for their respective houses.

Everyone was impressed with the pair’s work, especially the teachers, but being the gentleman he was, Lupin had claimed that he had done nothing more than follow Tonks’s instructions and that she was the one who deserved the whole credit for the excellent potions. Tonks didn’t like the attention, but Slughorn and Professor Tellomenah -the teacher of alchemy and healing draughts - were very satisfied with the girl; however, there was something that Tonks had neglected to tell the teachers and even Lupin. A few nights before, she’d had a strange  vivid dream in which she had been following a ghostly silver wolf around the corridors of the castle. The wolf had taken her to the rooms of the ill and she had seen a dark smokey being hovering over each of the sleeping sick. Their long nailed fingers that almost seemed as claws, caressed their victims’ sweat covered skin with a wicked smile; there were too many to be counted, but Tonks guessed that there had to be at least one for every sick person in the castle. A shudder had ran down her back as she saw the creatures drain the vital energy of the sleeping humans.

She didn’t  know what the creature was, nor did she know if there was a way to stop them, and she felt the desperation began to build in her chest.  Suddenly, a small, musical and sweet voice whispered two words into her thoughts: _ Tinneas Sidhe.  _ Tonks’s knowledge in gaelic wasn’t as vast as her dad’s, but she knew enough to recognize the words from some of the documents that her father often worked wit: Fairy disease. Everything seemed to make more sense, the students and the teachers in Hogwarts sudden fall of health; the ineffectiveness of Madam Pomfrey’s healing magic to improve the symptoms....It was all useless, since the real cause was an alien thing and not a real disease. The question then was, how she could stop it? When she had turned to the silver wolf hoping to ask him for advice, the animal was holding something between its jaws: a piece of black iron, the answer to her question. Tonks woke up, in her sleeping bag in the library, feeling  confused and unsure of the dream she just had. She thought of calling Lupin to tell him, but when she pushed off her cover found a small piece of black iron clenched in her hand. It was then that she had understood that her dream wasn’t a dream at all.

The next day, Tonks had searched through the cupboards of the Potions Classroom until she found a small bottle of black  cold iron dust. Black iron wasn’t very common in potions, but in alchemy, it wasn’t rare. In the wrong amount it could be deadly, but in the right amount it was proved to give the consumer a buff in vitality. She’d made a high bet when she’d taken a small vial of iron dust and sneaked into the kitchens, but a the very next day, everyone’s health began to improve and she knew that her dream had been right.

“Ahhh...it‘s simply too great to be out of bed…” Sirius said as he cheerfully ate his breakfast in a small wooden table in their dormitory “I envy you Moony. You and my cous were all  busy and cool while we were miserable and dying in bed...”

“I just don’t know how’s that you two didn’t get sick…” James said thoughtful “Well I have and idea about Moony, but Tonksie? There I thought she had a fragile health with her recurrent febrile relapses...”

“Maybe she was just lucky?” Peter suggested.

“Or maybe Moony’s love was protecting her…” Sirius teased and Lupin threw him the crumbs from his toast straight in the face.The full moon was a few days ahead, and he was starting to feel its effects on his mood.

“Don’t be absurd and be grateful that she didn’t get sick or you wouldn’t have had those potions to relief you…” Lupin said sternly.“The whole school owes her, now. You have no idea how many hours she spent brewing all those potions…”

“Someone is a little defensive, I wonder if it’s the  _ foul  _ moon speaking or you defending the girl you fancy…” James chuckled.

“Maybe both?”  Sirius smirked “But he has a fair point. We know Moony can hex and charm as pro, but when it comes to potions...we’d have die. We’ll have to  think of something to pay her. Cous deserves it…”

“How’s she by the way?” Peter asked. 

Classes were yet to resume until Madam Pomfrey said that the students -and teachers- were in their best condition to attend; and until further notice, all the sick students were supposed to stay in their rooms, so the house elves were delivering the food directly to the rooms instead.

“Full moon is close…” Lupin replied “She wasn’t feeling too well, so I told her I’d get her something to eat later and that she should try to catch some sleep…”

“Wow, you two might not be together, but you could fool anyone otherwise…” Sirius chuckled.

“Are you sure she didn’t catch the bug?” James asked with a little worry.

“Her symptoms are different.” Lupin replied “She’s fatigued, but other than that and a mild headache, she’s doing better than in other occasions.”

“ I was hoping to see her today…” Sirius sighed “but we’re supposed to head back to bed after breakfast or suffer Madam Pomfrey’s wraith.”

“You still need to rest. It’s for your own good…” Lupin reasoned “I’ll let her know you were thinking of her..”

“Will you give her a hug and a kiss from my part if I asked you to?” Sirius smirked wickedly.

Lupin rolled his eyes. He wasn’t going to hug her and kiss her in his name, if Lupin was planning to do it, he’ll do in his own name.

“Come on...isn’t it like a good excuse?” 

“Just eat that up and head back to bed, Sirius…” Lupin glared at him “You really must be feeling better if you can joke around.”

“You know me…”

Tonks wasn’t in her improvised sleep quarters or the Secret Potions room. He found the girl in the clock tower courtyard sitting by the fountain with a book open on her lap.

“It’s a little too cold to be reading outside, Dora…” he said sitting down by her side.

“Wotcher, Remus…” she smiled “I just got a little tired of being indoors, but I didn’t want to risk dying by going to castle grounds…”

“You say because of the cold?”

“Nope, because snow is slippery “she laughed “How are Sirius and the others?”

“Better...Sirius told me to give you a hug and kiss from him, so…”

Lupin leaned to place a court kiss on her cheek and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“Mmm...okay, and don’t I get a kiss from you?” Tonks smiled and Lupin snorted before locking his lips with hers.

“As many as you want…” he smiled “ What are you reading?”

Tonks lifted the heavy tome from her lap and showed Lupin the title of the book:  _ Crystals: identification and magical properties. _

“Interesting...why are you reading about crystals?”   
“That’s...something I wanted to talk to you.”

Tonks’s face grew serious; all traces of her mischievous smile were gone as she told Lupin the details of the story: from her revealing dream, to the solution she had made by adding a small amount of cold iron into the water supply of the castle. Lupin had listened to her with a serious look, and Tonks began to fear that he would take her as mental.

“So that’s why…” Lupin finally said. He wasn’t angry or disappointed, just thoughtful “I thought the water tasted slightly different this past few days…”

“I added only traces of iron so that it would be enough to ward off those creatures, but not enough to cause harm to the drinkers.” Tonks said “However, considering the absorption rate, the effects of the iron will pass in a few days. Without the iron, the ward will fall and I am afraid that those creatures will come back…”

“I remember dad saying something about a certain type of dark fairy that was known to bring disease I can’t recall the name. It caused a lot of trouble to muggles. You did  right with the iron, Dora..”

Having Lupin tell her that made her conscience feel much more at ease.

“But you’re also right...it can’t be a long term solution…”

“I know. Then I thought about us…”

“Us?”

“Why weren’t we affected? If the disease was caused by a magical creature, it didn’t matter if you were a werewolf, the effect should have the same...right? Why either you or I got sick?” 

Lupin did not reply. Hadn’t his friends wonder the same thing this morning?

“That’s a good question…” he admitted “I reckon you have an answer…”

“I...maybe…” Tonks replied pushing the book to his lap. 

Lupin looked at the yellow pages and his attention fell into a very familiar looking stone.

“Black Tourmaline….” Tonks said “We’ve been carrying one since christmas…”

Lupin read the entry on the book and his eyes widened in understanding. Black tourmaline was a protective stone and, unknowingly, he had given Tonks a protective charm then he had gave her the charm they used to talk.

“You really know how to keep a girl safe, huh?” Tonks smirked and kissed him lovingly. 

“I assure you I had no idea, but I’m glad I did…” Lupin smiled “The problem now, though...is what are we going to do with those creatures…”

“I don’t know. It isn’t like we can give a piece of cold iron or tourmaline to every person in the castle…”

“Maybe we should talk to someone…”

“But who…?”

The answer was obvious. Who else could have the last word regarding the safety of Hogwarts and its students?

“Dumbledore...of course.”

 

***

 

Talking to a teacher could be pretty intimidating, especially if that person happened to be the headmaster of a renowned magic school and a legendary wizard. It didn’t matter if the man was staring at her with kind caring eyes that reminded her of a loving grandfather, telling him she had done something she was most likely not supposed to do was always a tough thing.

“I am sorry, professor…” Tonks said softly once she had finished telling Dumbledore the story. Lupin who was sitting by her said took her hand under the table and gave her a soothing squeeze “I know what I did was reckless...but, I was afraid that if I didn’t try it, it’d be too late…”

“It’s alright, Ms. Tonks…” Dumbledore smiled “I understand you actions and, even though it was indeed a reckless choice, I can understand that you moved out of goodwill and I must remark. That I am impressed. Professor Tellemonah will be proud of you.”

Tonks let out a sigh, at least it seemed that she wouldn’t be receiving a punishment after all. She stared at the amber liquid that was steaming in her hands.

“Now...regarding your dream, Ms. Tonks…” Dumbledore said standing from his seat and beginning to pace around his desk “Is this the first time that happens to you?”

“Uh? I think so...though, it isn’t the first time I hear that voice, I think. It was familiar. ” Tonks replied thoughtful.

“You know the voice’s owner then?”

Tonks shook her head.

“I only heard it once before. When I found my dad in the forest…”

“Was this voice who told you he was in there?”

“Uhm...yes...I think so…”

Lupin looked at Tonks. She hadn’t mentioned the voice before and he seemed slightly concerned. His dad always said that hearing voices that others couldn’t hear, was never a good thing.

“I see…” Dumbledore said thoughtful.

The professor began pacing around the room clearly lost in thought. Lupin looked at Tonks, and the girl shrugged.

“You two have done well…” Dumbledore said gently “Rest at ease and let the rest of this matter be handled by us, adults. Children shouldn’t be worrying about this sort of things, after all…”

The man smiled at both from behind his half moon glasses and the two nodded. Lupin turned to Tonks and gave a comforting smile that she returned.

“Then...I won’t bother you anymore, professor…”Tonks said politely.

“Not at all, Ms. Tonks. I’m more than delighted to attend you. My office would always be open for you, but, if necessary, I’m sure Mr. Lupin will be able to contact me.”

“Thank you, professor…” Tonks said quietly. 

Dumbledore watched the pair leave his office and stretched his hand to caress the phoenix perched next to his desk.

“Ah Fawkes…” he sighed “I’m afraid that great dangers are preying on Ms. Tonks’s horizon. We can only wait for the better...”


	31. Poems and dreams

"Anyone can love a thing  _ because _ . That's as easy as putting a penny in your pocket. 

But to love something  _ despite _ . To know the flaws and love them too. That is rare and pure and perfect." 

**— Patrick Rothfuss**

 

The full moon passed quietly with the absence of Tonks’s cheerful presence  and, even though the company of Sirius, James and Peter had positive effects on Lupin, his wolf side still missed the young girl dearly and the boy was starting to think that perhaps his human side was starting influence his animal mind and making the attachment to Tonks permeate into his animal mind. In fact, he had to admit that his wolf’s mind was becoming more and more sync with his human's. He could remember more things of his transformation and he felt less aggressive. He wasn’t sure if it was due to his friends company or Tonks influence, but he decided that he wouldn’t lower his guard. Even if he felt more in control of his wolf, he was still a dangerous beast regardless of what his friends and girlfriend opinions were . 

The month went on and soon the white snowy scenery had been replaced by the early spring greenery. One afternoon, the Marauders sat around a table in the library, fidgeting over an old piece of parchment and conversing in whispers. Lupin was carefully tracing inklines and writing small notes under Sirius and James’s direction while Peter made one or two random observations. It was a new project that the Marauders had come up with after they began their night escapades. Ambitious but enriching, as Lupin called it. Hogwarts was an enormous castle filled with secret rooms and passages that no one knew, no one except maybe them, and it was time to put down all that information for future generations. 

“Ah..there should be a classroom over there…” James said “Seventh floor, east wing…”

“Ah...true. How could I forget…” Lupin nodded.

“I found a spell to track down people...do you think that works?” Sirius asked showing Lupin the book.

“Mmm...not exactly what we need…” he replied reading the spell’s description “Bookmark it, but keep looking. I'll help you. James take the quill and finish the rest of the map, would you? I’ll help Sirius with the spells…”

“Got it…”

Lupin passed the quill to James and moved to the shelves that Sirius had been digging through. . He was looking through some advanced charms and spells books when he caught a familiar voice from behind the shelves.

“Pay attention...I’m not wasting my time explaining this to you again…”

“Severus... I am trying, but I need  _ time  _ to process all the information…”

“You really are slow…”

“This slow brained girl made those potions you were drinking when you were sick in bed, Severus…”

“You’re going to use that argument against me from now on?”

“No….well, maybe. Doesn’t that prove that I’m not as inept as you claim me to be?”

There was a loud  _ Pop  _  and Lupin had to contain a soft chuckle as he could imagine what had just happened. An image of an irritated Snape whacking Tonks’s head with a book filled his thoughts. 

“Maybe not as inept, but inept nevertheless. We are running out of aconite, by the way…”

“Ah...I know. I saw the jar half  empty. I will go pick some later this week…”

“Wouldn’t be easier just to buy it?”

“No, Damocles said it was best if the plants were freshly harvested…and there’s a nice patch I’ve been keeping in the forest….No, not the forbidden forest, mind you.”

“Whatever….just stay out of troubles…”

“Ohhhh...is it possible that...you...are concerned about me?”

There was another  _ Pop _ and Tonks groaned in pain.

“Alright...alright...I’ll shut up…”

“Before I forget. I brewed another batch of vitalizing potion if you need it.”

“Ah, my savior...see? I knew you liked me.”

“For the last time…”

“I know, I know...you just do it because I’m more of a burden if I’m tired. It’s been better lately...”

“You can’t live on vitalizing potions.”

“Fatigue isn’t life threatening, just bothersome. Besides...look at me, ain’t I as good as I could be?...Oh buggers!”

There was a loud crack and Lupin guessed, by the sound of crystal hitting wood and Snapes growl that Tonks had most like knocked the ink bottle. Tonks had been taking vitalizing potions regularly.  The news were a surprise, he had noticed that the girl’s stamina was a little off some days, but he hadn’t thought that the condition was that serious. He’d 

“What did madam Pomfrey said about that matter?” 

“Same as always. Not sure where it comes from, so it can’t be fixed. She gave me a couple of Energy Potions and told me to come to her if I needed more.”

“Talk about effectiveness…”

“I’m fine. It’s just fatigue…”

Lupin frowned in concern, but his thoughts were promptly interrupted by Sirius nudging his side to show him the yellow pages of a book.

“Hey Moony...I think I found the spell…” Sirius said “This is supposed to reveal the identity of anyone roaming a specific area…”

Pushing his thought away from the conversation between Snape and Tonks, the boy read the spell and nodded.

“Yes, this should work...we might need to do some variations, but it should do.”

“Brilliant. I've never been so excited about something.” 

“You said the same thing when we the ice rink in fourth floor and when we charmed Filch's jumper to say” I'm in love with flobberworms”” Peter said with a smirk. 

“That was different. Do you realize we are creating a Masterpiece?”

“Methodically speaking…It is, if you consider the amount of spells we'll have to work into it. “

“luckily for us, we have Moony to guide us”James cheered. 

Lupin chuckled as he began to copy the spells they would need in order to complete the map. An hour later the four Gryffindors were ready to leave the small study cubicle, Lupin ,however, said that he wanted to stay back since he'd promised Tonks that he'd check her work with ghuls. The good thing about his friends restless attempts to match him up with the Hufflepuff was that they didn't object whenever he came up with an excuse to see Tonks. If only they knew that 90% of times they were either laying in each others’ arms or snogging instead of doing what he claimed to do, the three would be more than pleased. 

Tonks was sitting in the cubicle alone when he arrived. Snape had probably left some time ago, but Tonks had decided to stay behind, most likely to read. Unfortunately, she seemed to have done little reading, though, since she was evidently fast asleep. Lupin entered the cubicle quietly and sat down in the seat across the girl. Tonks’s head was resting on her hand; her position suggested that the girl had been staring outside when she had, unavoidable, dozed away. She seemed quiet calm, her hair was platinum blonde today, long, silky and wavy; the tiny sun rays that entered through the window made her hair glimmer like diamonds. 

Lupin didn’t know how long he sat there staring at Tonk’s sleeping face. It could have been minutes or could have been hours. He didn’t really mind.His eyes drifted from the girl’s sleeping face to the table that separated them. Tonks was a gifted girl, but being tidy wasn’t one of her many talents. The table was cluttered with pieces of parchment, books and dried pressed plants that Lupin imagined were probably potion materials. He picked a bunch of papers that were written in Tonks curvy handwriting, and he recognized some of the annotations at the margins as Snape’s, but there was a fine curvy handwriting that he did not recognize. 

Lupin had never seen the potions formula before, but he didn’t have to be an expert in potions to know it was complicated. His look traveled from the notes to the sleeping girl; the potion written in those notes had to be complex even for an expert potioneer as Slughorn, so it was impressive and intriguing that a young 13 years old student in Hogwarts was even attempting to try it. 

“What are you up to, Dora…” Lupin muttered looking at the papers and then turning back to the sleeping girl.

Tonks stirred in her dreams. Even though winter had come to an end, afternoons were still a little chilly and this part of the library wasn’t as warm as their little secret haven among muggle books. Lupin was reluctant to wake her since she seemed to be sleeping rather soundly, so instead he just gave her his cloak and sat down to “read” as he waited for her to wake up.

“How long are you going to pretend to be reading….?” Tonks mumbled curling under his cloak.

Lupin almost dropped his book in surprise. Tonks opened one eye to stare at him and chuckled at his shocked look.

“When did you wake up?”

“I think it was around the time you turned to chapter four...but I could be wrong…”Tonks giggled “I was too comfortable in here and you looked way to adorable…”

“Now you’re the one teasing me?” Lupin laughed shaking his head and putting down the book “Did you sleep well?”

Tonks stretched her arms over her head and wrapped his cloak around her shoulders. 

“Perfectly. I didn’t expect to wake up to see you though…” 

“It is rather reckless to sleep in random places...What if it was somebody else who found you?”

“The worst thing that could have happened then is that somebody might hex me…” Tonks shrugged “It’s Hogwarts, Remus...what dangers could there be beside Peeves pranking on me?”

Lupin sighed; she had a point.

“You look tired…” he said stretching his arm to cup her face.

“Do I? I’m alright. I’ve been having some rough nights, but nothing serious…”

“Nightmares?”

“Uh-huh...the usual…” she smiled faintly “I just wake up agitated and can’t fall asleep again…”

“You should call me when you’re having troubles sleeping...company might help you…”

“I don’t want to robe you your beauty sleep, my handsome wolf…” Tonks sneered “Really, it isn’t a big deal. My disturbing dreams are just that...disturbing…”

“Right. Disturbing or not, they are taking up your resting time…”

“I still got this few chances to nap and well, history of Magic too…”

Lupin laughed. He had to admit, Professor Binns’s monotonous voice was definitely an antidote for insomnia. 

“I might help to talk about it...the dreams, I mean; so… for real, if you wake up again,I don’t care if it is 2 am, just...call on me.”

“Oh, fine...I promise, but that doesn’t guarantee that you’ll answer.”

“I’m a light sleeper, Dora…” Lupin said shaking his head “What’s all this?”

“Ah...it’s a potion that Severus and I are studying. Quite an ambitious project, but it will give us some extra credits for future references. I need an O in potions if I want to qualify for the Auror program, after all…”

“Isn’t it a little too early to be worrying about that?”

“The earlier I plan, the better. At least, that’s what mum says…” Tonks giggled “You’ll be taking your O.W.L.s next year...have you thought of what do you want to do?”

Lupin didn’t answer. The truth was that he hadn’t. It felt like a waste of time to be thinking about his future when he knew there was few to none opportunities for someone with his condition. His time at Hogwarts was more like a fairytale in which the nature of his conditions seemed to have little meaning, but once he graduated and had to face the reality of adulthood and the wizarding community, things would mostly change for the worst. Sometimes he even felt like he should spare Tonks the future consequences, but his attachment to her always made him back away from the idea. 

“It really doesn’t matter what I want, Dora. You forget what I am. No one out there would ever consider hiring something like me…”

“ _ Someone _ , Remus. Have you ever thought that maybe going against popular opinion could make a change?” 

“Going against popular opinion?” Lupin snorted “Dora, you know that’s impossible…”

“Everything is possible, even things that we think impossible, Remus…” Tonks said softly taking his hand “You always thought you wouldn’t find someone who would accept you as you are, and yet you have friends that don’t care, teachers that know how brilliant you are, family that loves you and you have me...wasn’t that something you thought impossible once?”

It was, he thought, but then again, it was different. Hogwarts was another world.

“The world isn’t Hogwarts, Dora...it’ll come the day that all this will end and I’ll be just another monster…”

_ Too poor, too old , too dangerous… _

 

The words echoed inside of Tonks head and for a moment she felt sick. Those three phrases made her stomach coil in knots and her heart ache. The girl couldn’t understand why; nor could she recall ever hearing them, yet they were there, inside her thoughts and haunting then when she less wanted them.

Lupin must have seen something change in her face. The boy was now staring her with concern, but Tonks was quick and smiled at him.

“Live to make the impossible possible…” she said rubbing his hands “Make that your focus and forget about anything else.”

“Dora I….can’t…” Lupin sighed “my condition is real. I’m a werewolf...nothing can change that, and nothing will change how the rest of the wizards see me...“

“It’s not how they see you, Remus; but how you see yourself. Sometimes, you seem to forget that you’re not only a wolf, but a person, too. A person who happens to be the most decent, clever and kind hearted bloke I’ve met so far. I just wish you could see what I see when I look at you…”

Lupin didn’t answer. His look fell onto the mane of silvery hair locks that had fallen over her shoulder: sparkling and brilliant. It made him think of starry skies and shining moons.

“Your hair… It seems to spark today…” he mumbled absently and catching Tonks by surprise.

“Oh, do you like it?” Tonks smiled  “I did it inspired by something I read...”

“Really? And what were you reading, if I can ask ?”

“Some greek poetry. The poem was some sort of ode to a goddess and it described her hair so beautifully that I wanted to see if I could recreate it… at least this is how I saw it in my mind” Tonks replied grabbing a bunch of silver hair and looking at it. 

A smiled crossed the young Gryffindor’s face. He had no idea which poem she was referring to, but some words came to his mind and he recited softly :

_ To Selene _

_ Hear, Goddess queen, diffusing silver light, bull-horn'd and wand'ring thro' the gloom of Night. _

_ With stars surrounded, and with circuit wide Night's torch extending, thro' the heav'ns you ride: _

_ Female and Male with borrow'd rays you shine, and now full-orb'd, now tending to decline. _

_ Mother of ages, fruit-producing Mene, whose amber orb makes Night's reflected noon: _

_ Lover of horses, splendid, queen of Night, all-seeing pow'r bedeck'd with starry light. _

_ Lover of vigilance, the foe of strife, in peace rejoicing, and a prudent life: _

_ Fair lamp of Night, its ornament and friend, who giv'st to Nature's works their destin'd end. _

_ Queen of the stars, all-wife Diana hail! Deck'd with a graceful robe and shining veil; _

_ Come, blessed Goddess, prudent, starry, bright, come moony-lamp with chaste and splendid light, _

_ Shine on these sacred rites with prosp'rous rays, and pleas'd accept thy suppliant's mystic praise." _

Tonks listened to his words quietly. There was a small smile in her lips and she leaned over the table to plant a soft and loving kiss on his lips.

“Orpheus. Clever...you knew I was referring to Selene, huh?”

“It just came to my mind....”

Selene, the Greek goddess of the moon; the old greek considered that Hecate and Artemis counted as lunar goddesses,but  only Selene was the moon itself. She drove the moon chariot pulled by white horses across the sky, providing the night with its light. The moon, his eternal torture, and yet , he couldn’t stop marvelling  about its beauty.

“I remember a quote heard my grandfather tell me once…” Tonks said thoughtfully “ _ Maybe the wolf is in love with the moon, and each month it cries for a love it will never touch…” _

Lupin snorted at the irony of the phrase. 

“I don’t think I am in love with the moon…” he said softly.

“Do you hate it?”

“Yes...no, sometimes...I suppose.” Lupin sighed. It wasn’t the moons fault that he turned into a wolf. It was a trigger, a reminder about the part that the world seemed to hate about him.

“You know, many may hate and reject you, but there will always be those who see the beyond the imperfections..” Tonks said almost as if she was reading his thoughts“To me , you’re pretty much perfect already and I really wouldn’t change anything...”

“Anything? Wouldn’t you wish I wasn’t…?”

“I’d only change that since that’s what you want, Remus.However, you know? The things that hit us in this life and the scars they leave us is what make us who we are. The Remus Lupin I know is who he is because of that small scar…and that’s why I love him just the way he is...”

Lupin closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He breathed in Tonks scent of lilacs and he felt his chest tremble. . This girl could sometimes say things that were far too wise and make him feel like nothing really mattered. Love him?  He was a werewolf, a broken piece of human being...and yet she was willing to oversee all of it and even tell him he was perfect to her. 

“...And for the record…” she smiled “I thinks you’ll be a wonderful professor….”

In that moment, under the faint sun rays of a spring sunset that crawled through the window into the small space,Lupin knew, for sure, one thing.  He  _ loved  _ this girl, and just like she said he was perfect for her; he thought she was perfect for him.

 

***

 

Several days later, Lily tackled Tonks on her way out from charms. The hufflepuff gave such a big jump when the older Gryffindor tapped her shoulder that she accidently kicked the bucket that Filch was using to mop the corridor and  caused a mess of soap and water that had Peeves making a fuss of enjoyment. It’d clearly been an accident, and accidents weren't considered a violation of the school's rules, so Filch had no other choice but to glare and shout some threats at the unfortunate clumsy girl.

“That was really rude…’ Tonks sighed “Did you need something, Lily?”

“Oh, yes… Sorry about that. ”

“Don't worry, Filch likes me as much as I like him” Tonks shrugged.

“Ah, yes. I can relate. Hey, Tonks… It's been a while since we did something together, you know just girls. How about we hang out this weekend in Hogsmeade? We can go get something at Madam Puddifoot's and have some girl talk.... “

“Sounds nice. I've heard Madam Puddifoot’s has some good pies. I've been trying to drag Re… readings there for a change. “

“Excellent. Then we have a date, Tonks.”

“Wow, a date. I suppose I need to choose what to wear” she smiled.

“Well… You never know what handsome boy will be lurking around. “

“you don't mean James, do you?”

“N-no one said anything about him.”

“Right. Okay... “ Tonks snorted. 

Lily grabbed her arm like good friends do and walked with her. Classes were over for the day and she had no rush to go back to Gryffindor tower to listen to her dorm mates drool about James and his troupe of goofs.

“Where are you going now?“ she asked casually.

Tonks looked out through one of the corridors open windows. The spring sun was shining brightly over the castle grounds making the new grown grass shine like tiles of emeralds.

“I have gathering duties…”

“Gathering duties? You mean for Slughorn?”

“Even worse...for Severus....

Lily laughed loudly making a few passing ravenclaws glare at them.

“You don’t sound too thrilled about doing it for him.”

“No at all..,” Tonks snickered “Sev is a mate, I’ll gladly do him some favors, since he keeps doing me some too , but he’s worse than Slughorn when it comes to ingredient quality….”

“ Severus is an anorak for potions. Is he  tagging along to supervise?” Lily smiled knowing that Snape’s OCD regarding potions could be hard to handle.

“No. Slughorn has him locked in for some Slytherin stuff and I honestly didn’t want to ask. I’m going solo this time.”

“Why not recruiting an assistant? What about a certain fourth year Gryffindor? “

“ Last time I checked, there were four of them so you'll have to be more specific.”

“Well, Lupin obviously.”

“I’m sure Remus is busy doing his own stuff. No need to bother him with field work…”

“But Tonks, it is like the ...best opportunity for you to go and make your move!”

“I don't know what you expect me to do. Jump on him and kiss him like there is no tomorrow?”

“That's not a bad idea.”

Tonks did not comment and simply chuckled. Kissing Lupin like there was no tomorrow certainly sounded like a good idea, but if there was something she had learned from her mum, it was self control and proper behavior. She couldn’t imagine the look in her mother if she ever heard of her kissing her boyfriend like that; on the other hand, maybe the gesture would be a nice boost to his mood and self esteem. The boy seemed to be a little down since their talk about future plans.

“Tonks if you don’t make a move soon, someone else will…” Lily said “ Dorcas and Meredith are still crushing all over him, and I’ve heard them saying some bold things and ridiculous plans to get him for a snog.”

“Bold things huh? Does that count as harassment? Maybe I should warn Remus to be ready to sue a complaint…”

Lily burst into fit of laughter at Tonks’s deadpan and all business tone.

“You sounded like a ministry employee…”

“Did I? Maybe I’ll be one someday…”Tonks smiled “But really, Remus knows how to take care of himself and, as bold as those girls want to be, Remus is clever enough to dodge attempts of snogging that he doesn’t welcome…”

“ What if he decides to give her a chance?”

“Grant those girls a snog you mean?” Tonks laughed “As if, this is Remus we are talking about, not my playboy cousin. Remus is all manners and courtesy; a pure modern gentleman. A Mr. Darcy without the excessive pride…”

“You have been reading Pride and Prejudice?”

“Yup, picked it up a few days ago when I ran out of novels to entertain myself. Lydia Bennet drives me mental, but I like Darcy and I think Elizabeth Bennet is really stupid if she fell for Wickham’s scam. That man is up to no good!” 

Lily burst into laughs and Tonks smiled. One of the things that seemed to make Lily and Tonks close was that Lily was happy to have someone to talk about random muggle stuff without being judge or insulted. 

“Back into track, Tonks. Dorcas is getting serious about Lupin!”

“She’s not his type. I doubt Remus would even consider her as a prospect…”

“Who should I consider a prospect?”

Lily and Tonks stopped in mid corridor as Lupin head peeped out from an empty classroom with a grin. James, Sirius and James’s heads popped out soon after him and the three were smiling mischievously.

“Wotcher...why are you four, bunch of rascals, eavesdropping our lady talk?” Tonks said cooly.

“We were not…” Sirius defended “We were minding our business when we heard you and thought of saying hi…”

“Really…” Tonks said tilting her head and crossing her arms in a manner that made Lupin smile “Usually when the Marauders are  _ minding their business _ in an empty classroom for no apparent reason, it usually ends up with trouble and detention written in capital letters…”

“You hurt me, cous…” Sirius said dropping his arms over Lupin’s shoulders “When have you seen us get a detention when Moony is hovering on us?”

“He’s clever enough to avoid getting detention…” James grinned doing the same as Sirius did “The truth is, he’s the most mischievous one…”

It was a rather comical picture since Lupin was the tallest of the four and the other two boys had to lift their arms in awkward angle in order to reach him.

“Please don’t make us lose more points…” Lily said rolling her eyes.

“Don’t worry, Evans. We weren’t doing any naughty…” James smiled “In fact we were doing some...practical study of charms…”

“You know that sounds like trouble…” Lily said frowning.

“I won’t say a thing if you don’t either…” James grinned.

“You are a lost case, Potter…”

“I prefer to call it charm…”

“Back to topic, who’s Moony’s prospect? Because there’s someone I had in mind…” Sirius smiled mischievously giving Tonks a meaningful look.

“Well...if you’re thinking of Dorcas Meadowes…” Tonks replied blinking innocently “Congratulations…”

“Dorcas?” Lupin said raising an eyebrow “She’s still at it?”

“I think her crush was a little bigger than I originally thought, Remus…” Lily said “She...might really like you…”

“Like me… or more like she  _ thinks _ she likes me.” Lupin sighed “She doesn’t even know me…”

Tonks caught the bitterness in the tone and knowing where that had come from she was quick to straight up things.

“Ah, buggers. You have been blessed with the misfortune of having good looks, Lupin; but to your good fortune, there are some people who doesn’t get mislead by your cute looks and know your mischief” Tonks said patting his shoulder with a smile, and Lupin frowned at her before catching her “ _ You are mine,  so Dorcas can go bark at another tree”  _ look making him chuckle.

“I’m not sure if I should feel flattered or embarrassed at that lecture.”

“Be both then…” Tonks shrugged and gave him an  _ we’ll talk this later _ look to which he smiled and nodded “Ah, I should get going…”

“Where to cous?” 

“Duty calls...those water hemlocks aren’t harvesting themselves”

“Mind if I come?” Lily asked “I have nothing to do this afternoon and honestly the idea of getting to Gryffindor tower to hear those hormonal girls talking isn’t appealing at all…”

“Well, I don’t really mind; but finding  water hemlocks isn’t that amusing…”Tonks shrugged “In fact, it is a little rough.It grows in swampy grounds...so it will be muddy and gross…”

“Sounds like fun…” Lily grinned.

“Can we come too?” Sirius grinned “Sounds like an adventure, and I love those, right chaps?”

“I suppose it would be a nice change....” Lupin nodded “and I really don’t mind a little mud on my robes…” 

“Alright. You better get ready for some gardening time, then…”Tonks shrugged “I’ll fetch the the tools and I’ll meet you at the castle grounds in….20 minutes!”

“Do you need help grabbing those?”Lupin said.

“Mmm...thinking about that...yeah, maybe that should be advisable.” Tonks laughed.

“Alright, I’m sure Moony is enough man force to help you, so we won’t offer to help. See you outside, cous…” Sirius said winking at them “But take your time, we don’t want to have you tripping to death.”

“Hush, Sirius…” Tonks pouted “Alright “Gryffindors, this humble Hufflepuff is taking her leave. Follow me, Remus…!”

Tonks smiled making a theatrical bow and walking away giving small jumps like a happy child. Sirius nudged Lupin and grinned; the boy only rolled his eyes and walked after the Hufflepuff with a hidden smile. 

The tools that Tonks mentioned were in the herbology store house, so their first stop was one of the greenhouses to meet up with professor Sprout. The woman smiled brightly at them as she held a giant pot of Elvenphilian bellflowers. Unlike the common bellflowers, the elvephillian variety had very large flowers that changed their shade through different hues of blues and glowered like fairy lights in the dark.

“Good afternoon, professor Sprout!” Tonks greeted with a grin.

“Ah, good afternoon, Tonks, Mr. Lupin…” the woman smiled setting the plant on the gardening table and picking up a pair of gardening scissors “You came in time, I was about to trim the the Elvephialian bellflowers. With the upcoming spring, is better for it to start fresh. You can take them to Slughorn…”

“Ah, I’m sure he will be delighted about it, professor.” Tonks smiled “We’re heading to harvest  water hemlocks. We were wondering if you’d be so kind to lent us some tools…”

“Water hemlocks...oh dear, those are quite rough. Of course you can take borrow them. You do remember how are those meant to be handled right? Hemlock is quite poisonous…”

“Of course we’ll handle them with care…” Tonks smiled “I’ll pick up the bellflowers when I come to return these, professor.”

“Very well, Tonks…” Professor sprout smiled “Mr. Lupin, keep an eye on here. I’m afraid she’ll have it rough on those swamps…”

“I will, professor. Don’t worry…” Lupin smiled.

The pair picked the tools they needed from the small storage room and after saying thanks and goodbye to professor Sprout, they headed to the castle grounds.

“I am glad I tagged along…” Lupin smirked “I can see you rolling down the hill with all of these in your arms…”

“And how would you know I didn’t do it on purpose, huh? Rolling is a very efficient way to get somewhere, mind you….”

“And a very dangerous one, too. Didn’t you break your hip in first year after rolling down a hill?”

“Ah...that was a tragic miscalculation…” Tonks laughed “but maybe rolling with sharp objects isn’t the brightest idea in my arsenal…”

“Indeed it isn’t. Which is why I’m carrying the sharp objects…”

“Aw, there I thought you were just being a gent and carrying the heavy stuffs…”

“Aren’t I always?”

“Yes, you are and that’s exactly what makes you lovable…” Tonks laughed “Another of the reasons why Dorcas is  _ so _ crazy about you, my dearest…”

“Too bad for her I’m already engaged in a relationship.” Lupin chuckled.

“Is that what you’re going to tell her when she tries to seduce you?”

“She wouldn’t try to seduce me...would she?”

“I don’t know, but that’s what Lily thinks…” Tonks laughed “By the way, Lily asked me out this weekend, so I won’t be able to sneak with you in Hogsmeade.”

“Ah...that’s a pity…” Lupin sighed “but have fun with Lily. Girl company will make you happy…”

“I suppose it’d be fun. You may go on and enjoy your boys out…”

“I’ll make sure to keep them out of trouble.”

“Good...and you have my permission to drag Severus along.”

“ _ Your _ permission? I doubt he appreciates that.”

“Ah, he needs to go out from his brewing cave…” Tonks replied waving her hand “He’ll die young if he keeps breathing those fumes all day. Take him to a nice place would you?”

“I will…” Lupin laughed.

“Hey...that was faster than I expected…” Sirius greeted them “We got some food from the Great Hall. With such nice weather we thought we could enjoy ourselves and have a little improvised picnic.”

“Sure, just keep that food away from the hemlocks, unless you want a very painful death…” Tonks nodded “This way now.”

The swamp was several meters past Hagrid’s hut; it was a little deeper into the forest area and farther from the animal pen. It was an area that he usually avoided in his moon escapades, so it was a new scenery for him, the rest of Marauders and Lily. Tonks, however, seemed to be comfortable around it and it was clear that it wasn’t her first time there. 

“Goo’ afternoon, children! Fancy meetin’ ye ‘ere!”

“Hagrid!” they all said in unison when the large man came out from a group of bushes holdin what seemed to be some dead wild birds.

“What are ye kids doin’ out ‘ere?” he smiled under his beard “Not planning ‘ome bad prank, are ye?”

“They’re with me today, Hagrid.” Tonks grinned “We picking up some hemlock for the potion maniacs…”

“AH! Of course...but I thought ye were one of ‘em!” Hagrid said surprised “Ye always seem to be together…”

“Me? Nah...I haven’t reached that level…”

“Yet!” Sirius laughed.

“Not a bad thing. Potion are alway useful…” 

“She did brilliantly when the school fell to that awful cold…” Lily said with a bright smile.

“Ah, yes...I heard. Very well done, Tonks!” Hagrid clapped “I owe ye a cuppa for that. Saved me with those potions…”

“Well, Remus helped…”    
“Then I owe ye a cuppa, too.”

“Hey, what about us?!” James pouted.

“Potter, you did nothing…” Lily rolled her eyes “You were in bed acting as a baby…”

“And how do you know that, Evans?” Sirius asked.

“Heh, I heard madam Pomfrey complaining….that’s how.”

“Aye...easy, children. Of course ye are all invited to tea…” Hagrid laughed “I’ll send ya an owl, how ‘bout that?”

“Perfect!” Tonks smiled. 

“Well, gotta feed the hippogriffs...have fun, children…”

“Thanks Hagrid! See you around!” James said waving at the large man as he walked back to the animal pen.

Once the man had gone, Tonks began to distribute the tools among the present: antivenom gloves, a small scythe and bags to contain the cut plants. After giving them a quick explanation on which plants to cut and how, the group began to work. Despite the mud and the effort, Tonks saw that the group was really having fun and she was glad that she’d brought them along.

Once the plants had been cut and properly put into sealed bags. Tonks picked the tools and used a cleaning spell - in a very messy way that was soon rectified by Lupin- to clean them from any trace of poison and with every one clean and safe. The group sat in a drier area to eat the snacks that they’d brought with them. 

“Ah...I’m exhausted!” James said throwing himself in the grass…”

“Can’t be that bad. It’s not too different from quidditch training…” Tonks said frowning.

“Are you kidding me? This was a lot harder…” James laughed “How do you do this all the time, Tonksie?”

“I’m a Hufflepuff...never afraid of toil and hard work.” Tonks shrugged.

“And loyal to fault…” Lupin whispered so that only she could hear.

“Yes, you really fit your house, Tonks…” Lily smiled “It was tiring, but it was also fun. I didn’t know half of the things you told us…”

“My mother grows her own plants, my Head of House is the herbology teacher and I spend 70% of my free time with two potion maniacs...I  _ had _ to learn something.” Tonks laughed.

“You’ll get O’s in your OWLs…” Peter said devouring a sandwich. 

“Hopefully. I’m sure I can prove Severus I’m not an inept if I get O’s in my OWLS and NEWTS…”

“That’s aiming too high, don’t you think cous?”

“Aiming high is a push to move forward. Besides, everything  _ is  _  possible…”

“Ah..let’s not talk about future stuff, can we?” James sighed “I just want to enjoy my Hogwarts life while it lasts! I mean...when this is over….life won’t be the same…”

“It doesn’t mean it won’t be good.  _ A pessimist is a person who mourns a future that has yet to come…” _

“And where did that come from?” Sirius said with a frown.   
“It’s a proverb.There are many great things that could happen in the future and sometimes you just need to keep your eyes front even if what’s behind you feels like a burden…”

“When did you become a philosopher, cous?”

“When I decided to read a book of proverbs one afternoon…” Tonks laughed. 

Lupin sipped from his bottle of juice  watching and knowing that Tonks words were trying to encourage him; and he truly appreciated it. He’d done a lot of thinking after his talk with her about the future. He still had doubts and fears, but her support and constant encouraging was making him feel that, perhaps, he could aim for a future despite being a werewolf.

_ Without a woman's help, a man cannot set up a tent. _ Lupin thought and a smile painted his lips. Tonks hadn’t been the only one reading proverbs. In fact, he’d taken her book that day when he watched her sleep in the small library cubicle and right now, that proverb was the one echoing in his mind as he watched Tonks argue about proverbs with Sirius and laughing brightly. Maybe she could help him set his tent.


	32. Blood and Folktales

"Do you want to know the world? Then look at it closely. Do you want to like it? Then look at it from afar." 

—  **Ion Luca Caragiale**

 

On Saturday morning, Tonks stumbled all her way out  of the Hufflepuff house and headed to the castle grounds, where she’d agreed to meet up with Lily. The Gryffindor girl was waiting for her by the road that led to the school gates smiling and looking bright as always. 

“Wotcher!” Tonks gasped “I’m sorry I’m late!”

“Not at all…” Lily smiled “You’re just in time. The boys just passed by dragging poor Severus.He didn’t look too happy and I think he might be blaming it on you…”

“Ah, for Morgan Le Fay…” Tonks said rolling her eyes and crossing her arms.”He’ll thank me someday...”

“I’m not entirely sure about that” Lily laughed “ anyway, how about we go look around the shops first? We can stop by Madam Puddifoot’s for lunch!”

“That sounds like wicked I idea…” Tonks smiled.

The day was simply perfect for a stroll through town. Hogsmeade was usually busy and crowded, but with the arrival of spring season, the place seemed to burst into live. The streets were repleted with outdoor stalls that sold all kind of things from food, to perfumes and beauty potions.

Lily and Tonks laughed as they were trying some- absolutely ridiculous designed-  Leatherwing silk scarves and the second girl had made a comment on how Snape would be horrified to know that some valuable Leatherwing silk had been wasted into some  _ useless _ fashion accessory.   

Tonks didn’t have many girl friends -in fact, Lily was most likely the only one she had- and perhaps that was precisely the reason why Tonks wasn’t, much to her mother’s disappointment, much ladylike. However, Tonks had to admit that trying out clothes and  other things with Lily, was turning to be really fun.

“Oh-oh…” Lily said out of sudden pulling of Tonks sleeve “Don’t look, but Dorcas, Meredith and Anabelle are heading this way.”

“Good for them, should I say hi?” Tonks chuckled and Lily patted her arm with a smile.

“Evans!” Meredith Barley said when they reached the stall that the pair was currently looking “I thought you had said you had plans today when I asked you come along with us…”

“I...did. I mean, I was coming to town with Tonks…” Lily said nudging her head at Tonks, who was currently wearing a very pompous hat with a giant mushroom on its top.

“Ah... _ Tonks…” _ Dorcas said with a forced smile “Hello…”

“Wotcher! Fancy seeing you around. Looking for a hat, too? The ones from this shop are pretty nice...do you reckon I look good with this giant mushroom?”

“Ah...I wouldn’t wear that unless you want to look like a...well, giant mushroom” Lily laughed.

“How did you know that Giant Mushroom is the look of the month?” Tonks smirked “However, I think the trumpet flower one would suit me better…”

Tonks picked another pompous headgear that was shaped in the form of the flower and made it look like she had a giant purple morning glory over her copper colored hair. 

“What do you think?”

“Now you look like some sort of fairy…” Lily smiled.

“You think? Maybe I could buy that dress we saw earlier and wear them together…” 

“Planning to change your hood for one of those Tonks?”Meredith asked in way too sweet voice “I had no idea you were a ginger…”

“We were starting to believe the rumors that you had antlers hidden under it…” Anabelle Macullens said in the same tone “It was an interesting mystery.Too bad it turned out to be..fake. It would have made you less...wishy-washy...”

The girls broke into a fit of laughter, but Dorcas soon patted both of her friends when Lily glared at the Gryffindor girls. Tonks was calm, the girl even smiled.

“Wishy-washy? Well, now I certainly have to do something about that…” Tonks replied with a polite smile.

“I doubt there’s much you can do to improve that…”Meredith laughed “You know some habits are never changed…”

“Meredith, you’re being rude…” Lily said angrily.

“It’s alright Lily…” Tonks smiled “ I might not have antlers, but I don’t suppose….Snake hair is cooler?”

Tonks removed the hat and, to Lily’s surprise and the other girls horror, Tonks’s copper hair strands hat turned into sissing copper snakes with red eyes. The snakes lifted their heads and opened their mouth threateningly at Dorcas and company. The girls let out a loud screech and ran off  horrified as Tonks morphed her hair back into harmless locks.

“Well...guess it wasn’t their taste.I suppose they preferred the antlers…”

“You know...that’s going to start another rumor about you…” Lily said laughing “You’ll be the Snake headed Tonks…”

“Haha...that’s sounds like a badass nickname...I’m in…”

“I didn’t know you could… do that.” Lily said impressed.

“McGonagall was surprised too. She said she had never heard of metamorphmagus being able to do half morphings…” Tonks answered “The other day I turned my hair into a venomous tentacula. I think she found it funny.”

“That’s really amazing…”

Tonks smiled at her as they walked away of the stall and moved down the street and back into the main plaza. It was close to noon, and they decided that it was a good moment to head for lunch.They passed several other students on their way to Madam Pudditoot’s, including Boreas and his gang of brainless Slytherins; but after giving her a wave of insults Tonks had smiled and walked way while transfiguring the box of truffles they held into cockroach flavored nuggets instead. 

“I find miraculous that we haven’t seen Severus and those four, yet.”

“They’re probably minding their own business, being boys and fooling around…” Tonks shrugged “Maybe they’re in the Three Broomsticks drooling over Miss Rosmerta”

“I know Lupin is drooling for someone and she is definitely not Rosmerta…” Lily laughed “Tonks! Careful careful with that door!”

“What door?”

Tonks immediately knew  _ what  _ door when the thing collided straight against her face with so much force that she had no idea how her nose had survived. The culprit of the hit was a small man in his early 20’s with ginger hair and bandy legs came out stumbling out from the pub as he held his bag with a nervous look. He was immediately followed by a second man: tall with a long gray bird that reminded her slightly to Dumbledore.

“And I don’t want to see you around my inn ever again Fletcher. If you dare show up that repulsive face of yours here again...I assure you I’ll hex your bollocks off!”

“Ah c’mon, Ab...it was just a small mistake...no nee’ to get so touchy…”

“DO I HAVE TO REPEAT MYSELF?”

The younger man gave a screech and with soft  _ pop _ , he was gone. Lily and Tonks had watched the whole thing from their position in the cobblestone street. Lily’s hand rested on her shoulder, while Tonks was holding precariously her bleeding nose.

“Miserable tosser…” the man with the gray beard growled turning to enter the inn once more, but instead he caught at the singular sight of two girls crouched on the street; one who seemed to be bleeding “Holy goats, what happened to you?”

“The door…” Lily replied.

The answer about what had happened was pretty obvious and the man rolled his eyes a growling something about idiots who did nothing but cause trouble by only existing.

“That tosser...I should have hexed his arse. Let me see that, girl…”

The man crouched in front of her and examined her face by pulling her chin up and moving here head left and right. Then he began to  dab around her nose, sending a wave of electric pain into her face.

“Well, the good news is that it isn’t broken...but it sure needs some mending. Come in you two. As good as I might be with healing spells, I don’t fancy doing it out in street…”

Lily helped Tonks up and gave her a concerned look, but Tonks shook her head to let her know that it should be alright.  The two girls entered into the place after the old man and odd stenche, that could only be described as goaty hit their nostrils- or in Tonks a mix of metallic and goaty scent. The inside of the pub wasn’t any better than how it was outside, the place was small, extraordinarily dirty and strewn in sawdust so that the windows were practically obscured and the floor was almost invisible. There weren’t many guests, and the few ones seemed questionable. Lily gave Tonks a nervous look, but Tonks waved her hand trying to calm her. Despite being the first time she’d ever stepped there, Tonks found herself feeling quite comfortable and familiar in the decrepit tavern.

“Alright...sit down, would you?” the man said pointing at a small table covered in dust “I’ll be right back.”

The old man walked through a door behind the counter while Tonks and Lily sat down in front of the dusty table. Tonks nose was still bleeding profusely and despite her best efforts to stop it, the crimson liquid had plastered all over her blouse in a quite perturbing way.

“Are you sure it is normal for it to be bleeding that much?”Lily asked unsure.

“I suppose. He said it wasn’t ...ehm...broken…” Tonks replied.

“But...it is a lot of blood…”

“Don’t worry. It’s not the first time I smash my face against something. My dad said I had tons of nosebleeds when I was younger…”

“Really?”

“Apparently my innate clumsiness and a toddler’s first steps are a bad combo, too.”

Tonks words managed to make Lily smile. She was still a little uncomfortable in that grim tavern, but as it seems, none of the other guests seemed to be interested in them at all. The old man came back with a water bowl and a piece of clean cloth that almost seemed to glow among so much dirt.

“Now let’s see...does it hurt here?” he asked dabbing the upper part of her nose.

“No...auch….yes…”

“Tch...That tosser. Not only he comes selling his bloody messed up merchandise here, but ruins up a pretty face like this one…”

“Eh...it might have been  _ my _ fault for not looking…”

“No, believe me child. That tosser deserves to be blamed…” the man replied shaking his head “My name’s Aberforth by the way. I’m the owner of this place…”

“The Hog’s Head Inn?” Lily said reading the plate over the counter.

“That’s right. You two are Hogwarts students, right?”

“Yes, I’m Tonks and this is my friend Lily…”

“Tonks...like Ted Tonks?”

“He’s...my dad. Did you know him?”

“Know him? Tch...I had him in a few times here with that Black girl …”

“You mean my mum?”

“Yeah that one...Hid them behind the counter once when her crazy older sister came searching for the  _ bastard mudblood _ who had ruined her sister…” Aberforth replied “Not a nice lady, that one…”

“Yes, not my favorite aunt...auch…”

“Your mum, however. Was grain from another sack. I liked Andromeda. Tough but likeable….Alright stand still… _ episkey!” _

Tonks nose felt suddenly very hot and then very cold, but the bleeding had stopped and it didn’t hurt anymore. 

“Wow...I can breath again. Thank you Mr. Aberforth…”

“Call me Ab, would you? I hate those useless honorifics. Here, use this to clean yourself up.” Aberforth passed her the white cloth and the bowl of water. 

Tonks took it and used it to clean the the blood away from her face. It was a nice sensation to be off the blood at last and she smiled at Lily concerned look.

“How does my nose look?”

“Normal...I think…” Lily replied.

“Not big damage there. It’d be a pity if it had been permanent…” 

“With the collection of scars I’ve got, a twisted nose would just make me more interesting…” 

“Heh. I like you. You’ve got your father’s humor, but your mum’s resolution.”

“Ah, well thank you. That’s flattering…” 

“Don’t mention it. You’re ready to go,now.  Here have some sweet tablet pieces as an apology gift.”

Aberforth put a small paper package on the Tonks hands. It  was filled with a bunch of sweet smelling square that she recognized as an scottish sweet“I’ll make sure to kick that moron of Fletcher for you the next time I see him. I’ll have him owl you an apology, too.”

“Oh...thank you…” Tonks said taking the shapeless sweets and smiling “That isn’t necessary...”

“With...all due respect, ehm...Mr. Aberforth. I think we should go now…” Lily said smiling shyly.

“Aye, not good for young ladies like you two to be roaming this place. Say hi to your dad for me...it was nice to meet you.”

“The pleasure was mine...goodbye Mr…..Ab.” Tonks smiled “I’ll see you around!”

Tonks and Lily waved the old man goodbye and walked out of the Inn quickly. They walked down the street before finally stopping and looking at each other.

“Well...he was nice…” Lily said “ Despite the appearances…”

“Never judge a book for its cover. Aberforth seems like a nice bloke.”

“Yes, I suppose you’re right. You have a good eye when it comes to judging people after all. Besides, he seems to have helped your parents before…”

“Yes, about that. I should ask dad the next time I see him...like... Dad what the bloody hell were you thinking? Do you actually thing that tavern like that  is fit for a date….? And with a Black no less! No surprise Aunt Bella got her knickers twisted at him!”

Lily burst into laughs and Tonks smiled. She then looked down at her now bloodied blood stained and groaned.

“Maybe I should have asked him to clean me up, too…” Tonks said “Do you reckon that if I use a cleaning spell now, I won’t get detention for using magic outside of school grounds?”

“Well...it’s either take that risk or...you add up vampire to the Snakehead tittle…” Lily smirked.

“Ah...hush” Tonks laughed “but Vampire Snakehead sounds like a wicked name…”

The girls laughed ignoring the villagers that were looking at them strangely. Their laughter was soon interrupted by a loud familiar scream that made Tonks’s eyes widen in annoyance.

“COUS, WHAT THE BLOODY HELL HAPPENED TO YOU?”

“Oh, buggers…” Tonks said rolling her eyes and turning to face the owner of the familiar voice “Wotcher Sirius…”

Sirius, James, Remus, Peter and Snape were standing a few meters ahead of them. The five boys were looking at them pale faced. They had obviously noticed the splash of blood on her light pink blouse and were most likely thinking the worst possible scenario.

Sirius was the first to reach her. He grabbed her shoulders and began looking for any injuries; his look was furious and Tonks thought that it was the first time she’d seen the Black’s spark in his usual joker mannerisms; Lupin wasn’t too far behind, he was by her side almost as fast as Sirius and Tonks could sense his silent anger in his look.

James, Peter and Snape joined them soon after. The three looked at Lily questiongly, and the girl shrugged with shy smile.

“When Moony said he wanted come this way… “ James said wideyed” the last thing I would have expected to find is Tonksie covered in blood. It is  _ your _ blood right? You didn't get into a fight with one of his admirers or something.”

“Oh, yes… How did you guess? Dorcas never saw that coming…” Tonks replied sarcastically “Of course it is my blood, idiot.“

James smiled amuse.

“Who did it? Who do I have to kill? Was it Boreas again?  Because if it was, I'm going to blast his arse all the way to London…. ” 

“ Why do you assume it was someone? If you don’t remember, it’s  _ me _ we are talking about and I do tend to fall on my face frequently” Tonks said rolling her eyes and crossing her arms over her chest”and no, it wasn't Borea. And  I would reconsider that plan about blasting it. I doubt old Ab will appreciate his door being blasted into pieces… “

“Wait… Door? And who's old Ab?”

“He's the owner of the Hog's head.” Lily answered with a chuckle.” Someone banged the inn’s door right at Tonks’s face. Mr. Aberforth  was all nice and helped her.”

“Wait… so all that blood was because someone hit you with a door? “ Sirius said shocked. The murderous look was now replaced with a goofy smirk.

“You know my luck…. Apparently I have fragile capillaries too.” Tonks shrugged pointing at her nose “Let me make myself more presentable... _ Scourgify. _ ”

At the touch of her wand, the crimson stains in her blouse faded as if they'd never been there to begin with. 

“Better.” Tonks smiled “Now that I think about it, I should get Ab something in thank you. He actually didn't have to help me and yet he did…” 

“The Hog's Head has questionable reputation” Snape said with a frown” you'll do better to stay away… “

“Aw concerned about my safety?” 

“Maybe I'm concerned about the inn's safety… Knowing you, you might end up setting it on fire with whatever thank you gift you’ll plan… “

“You're still bitter about me setting your robes on fire, aren't you? It was an accident and, in my defense, you knew better than to wear long flappy  sleeves when you’re dealing with fire salamanders…”

“Hold on a sec. You set Snivellus on fire?” James grinned “How am I only hearing this now?” 

“There is nothing for you to hear, Potter.” Snape replied looking away. 

Tonks caught on James silently mouthing “ _ You got to tell me the whole tale!” _ at her and she giggled. 

“Ah, well. I’m glad to know you weren’t hurt…” Sirius smiled. The boy hugged her slightly and muttered softly into her ear “Remus got a little panicky when he caught the scent of your blood in the air…”

Tonks looked puzzled as her cousin stepped back with a smirk; she looked at Lupin in confusion and the boy  gave her a questioning look in return as he stepped to her side rested his hand on her shoulder.

“Since we happened to cross paths…” Lily smiled “why don’t we get lunch together?”

“Didn’t you have some sort NO BOYS policy for today?” Peter asked blinking.

“It was never closed rule…” Lily shrugged “Unless you had a No Girls policy…”

“Even if we did…” Sirius said wagging his eyebrows and nudging his head at Tonks and Lupin who were know talking casually “We can make an exception in the name of a greater good…”

“You really are a lost case…” Snape sighed pinching the bridge of his nose.

“What?” the other three replied cluelessly.

“Are you really that blind?”

“What?Why?” Sirius said looking around.

Snape rolled his eyes and shook his head. 

“If you can see it, I won’t tell you...it’s not my business…” he mumbled “Where to?”

Sirius was about to complain, but was interrupted by Tonks cheerful voice. 

“It’s a pretty day! Why don’t we get something for the way and do a picnic?” 

“What’s your obsession with eating outdoors?”

“What is your obsession with staying indoors?”

Snape glared at Tonks and the girl smiled and winked at him playfully. 

“Come on...is spring…” Tonks said in a begging voice “beautiful flowers, green grasses, blue cloudless skies...butterflies….rainbows and colors….happiness in general?”

“Are you some crazy wood nymph, Nymphadora?”

Tonks groaned at the use of her first name and glared at Snape, while the rest broke into laughs.

“Actually, I think a picnic sounds perfect…” Lily nodded “Alright let’s go get some food to share and we can meet up in the fields outside town…”

“Terrific! Let’s get those pies, Lily!”

 

Half an hour later, Tonks and Lily walked down the road that lead to the small fields between the village and the castle holding bags filled with pies and cakes they’d bought in Madam Puddifoot’s Tea House. Honestly, Tonks was glad that they were eating outside, Madam Puddifoot’s food was delicious, but the tea house was a little too corny and suffocating for her taste. She made herself a mental note to thank Remus for stopping her from going with him. 

“Seems like the boys haven’t arrived yet…”Lily commented “Let’s find a place to sit.”

“That spot over under that ash looks really nice, and it has a nice view too!”Tonks smiled.

Ted Tonks always said that his daughter had a keen eye, and it was a compliment that she took into heart. The place she had chosen to have their picnic was nice. They had a nice view of the castle and the Black Lake shimmering under the spring sun and the breeze was soft and fresh thanks to the trees that surrounded them.

Nature made her feel at ease. That’s why she enjoyed spending her summer days strolling around the fields of her house and her mother’s gardens; that’s why she choose to take strolls on nights of full moon or whenever she woke up from a bad nightmare and perhaps it was the main reason why she enjoyed those gathering quests with Snape and Slughorn.  Tonks closed her eyes and leaned back against the tree. She could hear Lily’s distant voice, but her words sounded too far for her to understand them through the sound of the wind blowing through the tree branches and the grass in a soft whisper that almost sounded as a call.

“Tonks?”

“Ah...yes? Sorry I think I spaced out for bit…”

“Yes, I noticed...that the boys are coming this way.”

“Well, that’s perfect because I’m starving and…”

 

_...Nymphadora… _

Tonks stopped in mid sentence and turned her head to look behind her. She was sure she’d heard her name coming from the woods, but behind her was nothing but vegetation and she felt a great impulse of run into it. She heard Lily greet the boys and talk about what they had bought, but for some reason she couldn’t quite focus on the conversation; her thoughts were misty and her look was still focused on the tree line behind them.

“Dora?”

Lupin’s voice by her side seemed to break the spell that had been casted on her and the girl blinked a couple of times startled. Lupin had taken sit by her side and his concerned green eyes were looking at her with a frown that she already knew too well.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes, I just...thought I heard something…” 

Lupin quirked an eyebrow and looked into the woods, too. Judging by his thoughtful look, Tonks knew he was probably using his wolf’s senses to see if there was anything out of ordinary around them, but after a few minutes he shook his head and looked at her again.

“I don’t think there’s anything strange. It was probably an animal…”

“Yes, an animal…” Tonks replied thoughtful “Maybe I hit my head with the door and now I’m just being paranoid…”

“About that...there’s something I want to discuss with you...in private. Do you think you can meet me in the library later?

“Sure...is it...bad?” Tonks added looking at his serious look.

“Well...it...depends, I suppose. Don’t worry about it for now…”

“What are you two conspiring about eh?” Sirius grinned passing them two bottles of butterbeer and a plate with shepherd’s pie.

“I was telling Remus that I’d found a very interesting book with a character that slightly reminded me of him.”

“And I was just asking her about the plot of the book…” Lupin lied too.

“You two and your books. That’s not fun at all…”

“Ah, you should give it a try, too, Sirius…” Tonks smiled.

“Reading isn’t my thing. That’s Moony area and he can keep it...”

“Sirius area is being a playboy…” James laughed.

“Wait..what?”

“Not important…” Sirius replied waving his hand “by the way, we ran with Dorcas, Meredith and Anabelle a while before we met you. They seemed quite flustered and they had this amazing story about you having snake hair...care to explain?”

“Maybe...I confunded them...a bit?” Tonks lied “Made her think that? It was an innocent prank…”

“Well, it was cool…” James laughed “They were terrified…”   
“They even tried to tell us to stay away since you were such a dangerous creature!” Peter laughed.

“Well, now that’s rude...I suppose she didn’t like my hairstyle for today.”Tonks said throwing her long copper hair strands over her shoulder for emphasis “maybe she's not that fond of gingers…”

“Well, Moony thinks it is pretty…” Sirius grinned playfully 

“But he clearly said his  _ favorite _ is when you wear Rose blonde…” James added “Like the one you had when we were in you house for Christmas. ”

“Ah really? That happens to be my favorite, too!” Tonks smiled. 

“Moony was all defensive of your strange habit of changing hair colors as you change knickers” Sirius laughed. 

“They were quite rude and I wasn't going to stand crossed armed when a friend was being bad mouthed…” Lupin replied honestly. The good side of being formally together, was that he didn't blush about small things like that anymore. 

“You keep telling yourself that, mate” James laughed “even Snivellus thought your lack of constance regarding your hair is silly.” 

“Ah, Severus is just shy. I know he has a favorite too, but he enjoys insulting me so much that he'll never tell me which.”Tonks said winking at them “Deep down that prejudice Slytherin heart...veeeery deep down, I know he likes me more than he admits…”

“No…”Snape replied glaring at her “you can keep dreaming, you biased Hufflepuff.”

“But she does have a point…”Peter said absently” didn't you tell those girls that as ridiculous as it was, it made her less insipid compared to some girls you knew?”

“You did say it… “ Lupin smiled knowingly. 

“And it basically counts as you admitting that you  _ do  _ like Tonks in a way...right?”

“Pettigrew…, my hand may slip some puking draughts into your pie…”

“Now, now Severus…” Tonks said purposely clinging over Snape’s shoulder. The boy made a horrified face and tried to push her away “What did I tell you about threatening your friends?”

“ _ Nymphadora _ ….I won’t hesitate you hex you if you don’t back off…”

“Somebody needs some love….” Tonks giggled.

“Ooh….I’ll help you hah!” Lily said jumping to join her at clinging at Snape.

“Lily...don’t…”

“Awwww….Group hug? I’m in!”Sirius said with a mischievous grin. 

What followed was like a chain reaction in which Snape - who currently had Lily and Tonks hanging from his neck- was thrown over the grass by a laughing Sirius, followed by James  and Peter and lastly, pulled by his friends, Lupin. It wasn’t precisely a group hug, as Sirius called it, but the group were laughing and even Snape seemed to be quite amused.

“Alright enough, I think I can’t breathe anymore!” Tonks laughed.

“Because of being squished….or because of laughing?” Lily snickered. 

“Both! Sirius is just too heavy!” 

“Hah….that’s most likely Moony’s fault not mine! Sirius replied pushing Lupin from his side laughing.

“Get off or I’ll hex you all!” Snape groaned.

After goofing around for a while the group returned to their food and casual chatting. The air was soon filled with laughter as James was chasing Peter around them pretending that he wanted to kiss him. A small smile was drawn in Tonk’s lips as she watched the group and not quite participating in the chat anymore. There were times when she felt out of the group, but she didn’t care.  As long as she saw the look of joy and the smiles or heard the laughter, she wouldn’t mind disappearing from the scene.

_ Nymphadora… _

Tonks attention was suddenly diverted from the image of her friends and her look traveled back to the trees behind her. The voice had sounded much clearer now, closer, but still there was nothing but trees and wild bushes behind her. The owner of the voice was still a mystery.

“Tonks?”

Lily’s voice brought her attention back to the group. They were all looking at her curiously and Tonks realised that she must have spaced out again.

“Eh...sorry….?What was that again?”

“You’ve been zoning out a lot since we came here…” Lily smiled gently “Are you feeling alright?”

“Yes! Sorry” Tonks laughed apologetically “ I just tend to space out when I’m relaxed and well, this place happens to be relaxing.”

“Indeed…” Lupin smiled  looking around“It is quite a nice place to sit and enjoy the nature. You choose a fine place for the picnic.”

“This is a nice spot…” Sirius said “I’m not going to lie, I’m not a country boy, but this place has really nice trees and there’s something about the ambience that makes it...I don’t know...”

“Hypnotic?” James suggested “I mean if you look to long into those shadows they’re kind of hypnotizing…”

“Didn’t know you could be poetic, Potter…” Lily smiled.

“Hey, I have my times…”

“These woods are part of a forest line that crosses over the northern part of country, bits of the Caledonian Forests. Muggles had tons of legends regarding it and it was a known home for fae folk”Tonks said almost as if she was reciting a book and looking at her friends dumb looks she quickly added” my dad likes folklore and half of my family were superstitious muggles… “

“What are fae folks?” James asked curiously. 

“You've never heard about the fae folk?” Lily asked surprised “being wizards and all, I thought you would….” 

“wizards don't believe in the fae, Lily” Snape said “not anymore. The term must have gone lost long ago...only the muggles still use it...” 

“Why?” Lily asked “ Aren’t house elves and many of the creatures we study fae?”

“They are...technically…” Lupin explained “Just like with the muggles, originally, the fae existed as a parallel magical community with wizards, but just like with muggles, conflict arose between them. Not sure how that story goes, but it seems the Fae lost and as result they retreated into oblivion. The few remained, but they’re strictly controlled by the Ministry…” 

“So..they’re sort of, extinct?”

“Or hiding…”Tonks replied looking back into the woods.

“The place that was attacked in London is were most of the documentation of the Fae is kept…” Lupin said “My dad finds them quite fascinating, but not all wizards think like that…”

“Well...condemn wizards for being prejudice tossers who think we are some sort of superior race among other magical creatures…” Tonks pouted.

“And there you go…” James laughed “Tonks, a equality, magical rights defender just appeared….”

“But she’s right…” Lily said tilting her head slightly “Don’t you think that...pushing an entire magical community into vanishment is kind of...mean?”

“Not to say treating the remains as scum or slaves?”

“Alright...don’t get your knickers twisted, cous…” Sirius said patting her back “The old people have done some serious crappy stuff to some of those creatures, that’s true, but they’re not exactly innocent…”

“Yes, I suppose…” Tonks sighed.

Lupin rubbed her back comfortingly. He knew that part of her anger was related to the way the wizarding community treated werewolves and he couldn’t help feeling grateful at her indignation, even if he knew that maybe it was undeserving.

“Anyway...is anybody going to explain me what are Fae Folk?” James shrugged.

“The fae folk are creatures with magical ability or some blatant supernatural powers who are closely linked to the magical powers imbued by nature. They were originally classified as elementals and currently they’re under the jurisdiction of Magical Creatures according to the decree 4678, article 75…”

“Well...trust Moony to give you the textbook definition…” Peter laughed.    
Lupin smiled slightly. 

“I just did my reading. I had reasons to be interested in the  _ Fae _  recently.” It’s been quite fascinating…”

“Well, to be fair...is hard to find something that you don’t find fascinating, Moony…” Sirius laughed. 

“Not true…” Tonks laughed “He’s not fascinated by potions.”

At the comment Snape snorted and Lupin laughed. 

“So we have a...DADA maniac and a Potion Maniac…”Tonks said pointing at Snape and Lupin.

“A Transfiguration maniac considering how much you love to transfigure your hair…” James smirked.

“That’s not transfiguration…” Tonks said solemnly “It’s style…”

“Well whatever…I don’t think I’m maniac about something…”

“Yes, me either…” Lily admitted “We’ll leave those titles to you two.”

“I can see them teaching at Hogwarts…” Tonks chuckled “Let’s hope you don’t teach me...that would be weird; but you might end up teaching my descendants in the future…”

“If they’re half as annoying as you are…” Snape said in a deadpan  voice “Be sure I’ll have them for detention regularly.”

“WHat makes you think they’ll be mischievous?”

“...You really asking me that?”

“Hey, they could turn out as their father!”    
“Precisely why…”

Lupin was the one who choked with his drink, spilling a bit of it on the grass. Tonks didn’t seem to catch the implications of Snape’s comment and she patted Lupin’s back innocently.

“Easy there. No need to drink that fast…”

“Yes, sorry…”

“I think it’s about time we head back, right?” Lily said “It was a really nice day outside. We should do it more often…”

“You bet, count me in for the next picnic…” James said putting an arm around Snape’s shoulders “We’ll bring Snivellus even if we have to tie him down and drag him from the castle…”

“Adorable…” Snape said annoyed.

Everyone laughed. It had been a great day, but like many other great things, it has to come to an end. 

 

***

It  was already evening by the time Lupin managed to brush James, Sirius and Peter off his back  and walked out from Gryffindor tower. He had told Tonks that he would meet her in the library by late afternoon, but Marauders had managed to delay him several hours and now he was awfully late for the appointed hour.  As a result, he had found himself running all the way from the west tower to the Library.

“Wotcher!” Tonks smiled at him  brightly when he came into the room gasping for air “You seem to have been running around the castle.”

Tonks had changed her initial copper look from their early visit to Hogsmeade for her usual rose colored waves that barely passed her cheek level.  She had several books open over the table and she didn’t seem bothered by his lateness. 

“Blame it... on my fellow Marauders for making me late…” he gasped dropping on the chair and trying to catch his breath. 

“Wow, were you really  _ that desperate _ to see me?” Tonks said giggling” I should be flattered...you okay?”

“I’m fine…” Lupin replied taking a deep breathe and waving his hand in front of himself “What are reading?”

“Well, today’s conversation regarding the Fae made curious so...I decided to take a look on the lore…”

“Reading muggle folktales?”

“Well, there’s not much to see in the magic section so...yes…” Tonks shrugged “Are you really okay? You are a little too flushed…”

Tonks caressed his cheek with an amused look and he answered by taking her hand.

“I was already late…”

“I could have waited until midnight and then I would have probable sneaked into Gryffindor tower to make sure you were safe and sound…” Tonks laughed.

“Talking about being overprotective and paranoid...”Lupin laughed “What if I simply forgot we had a date?”

“Not likely...you’re not one to forget important things…” Tonks said waving her hand “And….you were the one to tell me to come...unless you were planning stand up at me…”

“I would never…” he chuckled.”just for curiosity...how exactly where you planning to sneak into the tower?”

“Yes, that’s  probably another story. Do you want a piece of tablet?” Tonks said changing topic and offering him the wrinkled paper bag.

“Tablet? Where did you get this?”

“Ah...an apology gift from Aberforth…” Tonks shrugged “For the door incident. He’s a nice bloke.”

“Right...the door incident…”

Lupin took a small piece of the sweet and popped it into his mouth. The door incident was precisely the reason he had wanted to see Tonks in the first place. 

“Sirius mentioned me something. He said you...caught the scent of my blood in the air?”

Lupin’s expression became serious making him look slightly older and more- in Tonks opinion - professor like.  He had indeed caught the scent of her blood in the air; it wasn’t a big deal considering that he had more sensible senses due to the lycanthropy; but the fat that he had been able to smell it from the distance he had, was what had him more alarmed. 

“I did…”

“You sure have a very good nose, wolfie…”

“Nice to know you look at it positively…”

“Always…” she smiled “So what did you want to discuss with me?”

“My dad wrote back. It took him awhile since he needed to research about it, but he thinks he has an idea of what those things are.”

“Oh! Tell me…” Tonks said pulling the boy to sit next to her. 

“He thinks it was a kind malicious sprites called Qhesiths. Like Dementors they feed on human energy, however, according to what my dad said, Hogwarts barriers should be enough to keep them away, and usually, they prey  bigger targets.”

“I doubt a bunch of hormonal teenagers is a tasty meal, huh?”

Lupin smiled. 

“Precisely. That’s what my dad found odd; so there are only one possibility: they were attracted by something that wasn’t originally in here.” Lupin said crossing his arms “Remember that time when we were almost caught by professor Dumbledore and McGonagall snogging in the corridor…”

“And that you pulled me  into an empty room…” Tonks smirked “Of course I do. What about it?”

“I overheard them talking. Dumbledore had brought back something to castle. Something he didn’t know what it was, but that was important. Whatever that was, it is hidden here in the castle…”

“And you think it is what attracted the Qhesiths…” Tonks said clapping in triumph “ What do you think that thing was?”

“I have no idea, but whatever it is; it’s definitely something very valuable for they way they were talking and I’ve heard that Hogwarts is the safest place to hide things.”

“Do you think Dumbledore knew it could attract those things?”

“No, if he knew he wouldn’t have brought it; unless...unless he thought the school barriers were enough to keep them  away.”

“Well, we saw it can’t…” Tonks said frowning “Wait...DO you reckon it attracts other things too?”

“It’s highly possible…” Lupin sighed “Dad also said that, normally, human shouldn’t be able to see them….you saw them, Dora.”

“It was dream…”

“It’s the same…” Lupin said shaking his head. He squeezed her hand and looked at her with his usual concern “Dad warned. He told me to keep an eye on you, but I can only do it if you let me so, listen. If you have another dream like that one or if you hear voices or things like that...you  _ need _ to tell me.”

Lupin’s look was so stern that Tonks felt slightly intimidated. She only nodded and suddenly she found herself trapped between his arms.

“I worry, so help me a little, would you?”

“I know you worry…” Tonks replied hugging him, too “I’ll tell you if anything like that happens again. I promise.”

Lupin pressed a kiss on her head as he hugged her protectively. The words of his father echoed in his mind:  _ Qhesiths are Fae, Remus. They haven’t been around in centuries and like every other Fae, they wouldn’t let themselves be seen so easily;  If Nymphadora is able to see them, that makes her remarkably special. More than she already is,. Keep an eye on her, son. Just in case. _

His father advice had been honest and concerned. The man liked her and he was eternally grateful for the effect that young girl had on his son. The difference his son’s attitude was obvious to both of his parents and none of them wanted to see her jeopardized; but even if he hadn’t been told to, Lupin would have done so anyway. 


	33. Just a tree away

"A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one's neighbor — such is my idea of happiness." 

—  **Leo Tolstoy**

The last months of the school term passed without too much fuss.The week of finals was rough and tiring and  the end of it came like a blessed gift to all the students. In a few days, they would be boarding the Hogwarts express and heading back to London, but until then, they all decided to rest and have it easy. Summer was approaching, and with it, the days were turning warmer and nice for being outdoors.

The day before their departure to London, the Marauders were lying on the grass  watching the cloudless skies.

“I am so glad that’s over…” James said throwing himself into the grass and pulling out the snitch from his pocket. He made a habit of snitching the thing and playing with it in his free time “Examinations are such a pain…” 

“You bet...I think I did so bad in potions…” Peter growled miserably “I confused Morthan Rosemary with Common Rosemary…”

“Well, that’s sucks mate.” James laughed “How did you do, Moony?”

“Theory was great…” Lupin replied leaning against the tree “Practical...dreadful. My potion didn’t even change colors after 20 minutes… it was brownish green…”

“And how was it supposed to look like?” 

“Water clear…”

“You go yourself a cauldron of muddy waters, Moony…” James laughed “You should consider telling Snivellus help you out for next year’s OWLs…”

“He wouldn’t have the patience to deal with my ineptitude…” Lupin laughed.

“I know someone who would deal with it…” Sirius grinned “I heard somebody did awfully great in her potions examination. Even Snivellus seemed pleased…”

“You mean Dora?” Lupin smiled with a small hint of pride “Slughorn offered her to exempt her form the examinations since she had already proved herself with the pandemic incident, but she said it would be bad seen by the rest of her classmates.”

“She took that damn exam willingly…” Sirius laughed “and aced it. I heard they were asked to prepare and Anti-coughing draught…”

“I saw her brewing those for weeks…” Lupin smirked “she could do it blindfolded, I assure you that.”

“Do you reckon Snape’s been teaching her how to brew advanced potions?”  James asked.

“I wouldn’t be surprised…” Sirius replied “Those two are always hanging around together.”

“Tonksie is clever…” Peter said “she seems to be pretty advanced for her year…”

“Yeah, they should have moved her into ours….then again, the girls would probably mess her around.”

“I would  _ love  _  to see them trying to mess up with my cous…” Sirius growled.

“Talking about the devil…” James grinned “Look at those two…”

Snape and Tonks were walking down from the castle; the girl was in front of him, walking -dangerously- backwards as she spoke to Snape. The black haired boy seemed to be quite irritated as the girl seemed to wagged something in front of his face.  Tonks missed a step and almost fell on her back if not for Snape pulling from her necktie and throwing her glare. They were, now, close enough for the Marauders to hear their voices.

“Ooof...that was close…” 

“You should know better than to walk backwards. You fall down even when you see where you are going…” Snape said rolling his eyes “And what are you doing with that thing?”

“It’s my new pet! Hagrid said I could keep it! It was his thank you gift for the healing potions…”

“Isn’t there like some kind of regulation regarding wild magical animals?”

“Nifflers are friendly creatures and no, according to Kettleburn, there’s no prohibition. I heard Newt Scamander had a pet niffler, too!”

“You Hufflepuffs and your attraction for strange creatures…”

“Oh, come on….look at him! He’s so adorably cute! Lily loves to scratch his tummy…”

“Don’t drag her into this…”

“Well, mind you. She was with me when I went to chose and Hagrid offered her one, too, but she said her sister would freak out if she showed up with a strange mix of a mole and ornithorynque that has an obsession with shiny things.”

“Petunia would try to smash it with a broom like a rat…” Snape nodded “better not…”

“But I told Lily she could play with Hugo whenever she wanted.”

“Hugo? You even named the thing?”

“He  _ is _ a friend, Severus. I’m not going around calling him the niffler, all the time….oi...Hugo...where are you going?”

Suddenly the baby niffler jumped out from Tonks hands and ran to the group of Gryffindor boys. Hugo was still a baby, so when it made an impressive jump to snatch the snitch from James grip, the small fur ball rolled several times on the grass before realizing that the thing was way too big for his pouch.

“What the bloody hell?” James said still in shock.

“Oh...that’s…” Peter said wideyed.

“A niffler…” Lupin nodded. 

Tonks and Snape left the main road and rushed to the group. The girl caught the small niffler and pulled the snitch from its grip.

“Bad boy!” she reprimanded him “You can’t go around snitching stuff from people, Hugo. That’s rude…”

“Friend of yours, cous?” Sirius asked when Tonks turned to return the snitch to James.

The small niffler was hiding under her hood, but they could see to brilliant eyes staring at them curiously.

“Yes. It was a present from Hagrid. Isn’t he cute? His name is Hugo…”

“He’s an annoying little beast…” Snape said shaking his head “Not cute at all…”

“You’re just resentful because it tried to steal your silver potion tools.”  Tonks laughed “He’s a baby...all he does is taking shiny stuff; he doesn’t care what it is. I’ll have him trained  and you won’t have anything to complain about...”

“You better do or you restrain from taking him to my Potions Room…” Snape warned her.

Tonks tucked her tongue at him and pouted before smiling at the four Gryffindors that were looking at them amused. 

“What are you four up to? Trying to catch a tan?”

“As if…” Lupin chuckled “I’m afraid I am permanently pale…”

“And I don’t think I can get tanner that how I look already..too much quidditch sessions under the sun” James laughed “What about you two? Surely Slughorn isn’t sending you on a quest at this time?”

“Nope, we are out for a stroll…” Tonks smiled.

“More like she  _ dragged _ me out for a stroll…”

“Hush...if someone needs some color in his life, that’s you, Severus…” Tonks chuckled “It’s a pretty day and you need a break.”

“She’s got a point there, Snivellus…” Sirius smiled “Look at the day. It’d be a crime to spend it indoors. Come on sit down with us...”

Before he could even replied, Sirius and James had already pulled him to the ground between them and Tonks laughed at Snape’s irritated face when they got him in a friendly hook.

Tonks sat down between Lupin and Peter and let the baby niffler run around her lap. Lupin smiled and looked a it curiously when the creature sniffed him.

“That’s Remus, Hugo. A very good friend so don’t be rude…”

“Hugo?” Lupin asked while he scratched the niffler’s belly “That’s a curious name…”

“You mean ridiculous…” Snape said releasing himself from James and Sirius grip.

“Lily thought it was cute, mind you…”

“Hugo the Niffler…” James said “It’s funny…”

“Are you sure you can take care of that thing?” Sirius asked “You can barely take care of yourself…”

“I can take care of myself perfectly well…” Tonks pouted “Besides...this little guy will be a great company during summer…” 

Tonks smiled as Hugo made his way through her robes looking for anything shiny for his collection. The saddest part of summer was that she would be away of most of the things that kept her her busy in Hogwarts. Everyone would be going to their own homes and as much as she loved her home, it could be a little lonely with only her parents around. At least now she had Millie and Hugo to make her company.

“Hey, you never know. I might sneak out of home again…” Sirius grinned “I hate being in my home, anyway…”

“It was really fun last summer…” James smiled “but we missed Moony, so this time we have to get the whole gang together, right Snivellus?”

“Are you suggesting I  _ am _ part of your gang?” Snape asked with a frown. 

“Of course you are, Snivellus…” Sirius grinned “You were since the first time you helped us with a prank…”

“...”

“Did I hear gang?” 

Lily had just arrived from the castle with a wide grin. The girl sat down next to Tonks and immediately began petting the baby niffler.

“How come you are out here having a nice meeting  and didn’t call me to be part of it? I feel left out!”

“Sorry, Lils…” Tonks laughed “It wasn’t planned, but you’re here now...so the “gang” is completed…”

“That’s most likely…” Lily smiled approvingly.

“Wait...I thought you didn’t want to hang out with a bunch of trouble makers like us, Evans…” James said surprised.

“I can ignore  _ that _ part…” Lily shrugged “Besides, Tonks is here and so is Severus; and I prefer your company over those annoying Gryffindor girls…”

“Well...you’re always welcome to my ship…” Tonks chuckled “if I had one.”

“Delighted…” Lily smiled” So what are we discussing?”

“Sirius’s plans to run to my house this summer…again...” 

“Oh...that would be really nice. There were still a lot of places we didn’t go because you were sick. Count me in, Black!”

“We haven’t done any plans yet!” Peter laughed.

“I’m sure mum and dad would love to have you over again. Your dad isn’t planning any research trip again, is he, Remus?”

“Not that I know…” Lupin smiled “ I might follow Sirius and hide in your house …”

“Moony and Evans are in, then…”

“Don’t forget about me…” James said raising his arm.

“And Severus…” Lily added.

“You can’t be serious Lily…” 

“You’re coming with me, want it or not, Severus…”

Snape sighed in defeat and raised his hand.

“We’ll I suppose I’m in, too…” Peter added.

“Brilliant. Wait for my owl then. Let me organize it. I did a great job last time…”

“If you call that horrible trip in the Knight Bus great….” Snape said with a raised eyebrow.

“Hey, how was I supposed to pick everyone?”

“I would suggest using the floo next time..” James laughed.

“What’s the fun in that?”

The group laughed. Another year of Hogwarts was over, but their summer adventures were soon to begin.

 

***

Summer was warm in the area were the Tonks’s house was located, but never too warm, and even if it had been, the spells that Andromeda kept around her garden to ensure her plants’ well being always made her house look like the land of spring. It was lucky that their nearest neighbor was miles away from them, or they would certainly find the forever blooming flowers too suspicious.

Tonks needed a couple of days to catch up with her home’s routine, but despite missing her friends, she was really happy to be home with her parents. 

“Dora dear. Come down for breakfast, would you?”

“Coming!” Tonks said picking up Hugo from her bed and running down the stairs and tripping gracelessly on the last step.

“Nymphadora, what did I tell you about running down the stairs?”

“You’ll fall right on your face... “Tonks replied pushing herself up “Sorry…”

“You brought Hugo along?” Ted chuckled “that little rascal had my keys the other day.”

“I just noticed, but he has a strange preference for keys…” Tonks said sitting down and grabbing a piece of toast.

“Well, at least you know that the he’ll make an excellent Key Keeper…” Ted laughed “Don’t you think, Dromeda?”

“As long as it stays out of my vanity…” Andromeda nodded.

“I’ll keep him out your room, mum. I promise…” Tonks giggled.

“By the way, dear…” Andromeda said spreading some butter on Ted’s toast “What are your plans for today?”

“Honestly? I don’t really have anything planned…” Tonks shrugged “Do you need help with the garden?”

“Not really. I was planning on visiting our new neighbors. There are somethings that I wanted to drop off. Would you like to come?”

“New...neighbors?” Tonks said surprised “Wait...since when do we have neighbors?”

“They moved in while you were at Hogwarts…” Ted explained “just a couple miles from here. The forest keep us apart, but the shortcut spell I did makes the thrip less…demanding. ”

“Oh, okay...are they nice?”

“Of course they’re nice, Nymphadora.”

“I think you'll like them, Dora. Your mum does. “

Tonks couldn’t help but feel curious. The main reason why her parents had chosen this place to settle down was precisely the lack of neighbors. The place was beautiful, but it was very isolated and apart from human civilization to be attractive as place to settle down. In Tonks opinion, she loved it. The closeness to the first and the moor were her favorite things along the inherent sense of privacy and peace. Perhaps these new neighbors had fallen in love with it too.

“They have a son around your age…”Ted smiled “I nice boy that you will surely like…”

“Dad, you are not trying to set me up, are you? You know I'm with Remus… and if it has anything to do with…”

“No one is setting you up, Nymphadora. We are just saying you  _ might _ appreciate the company.”

Tonks sighed. Her parents were exchanging strange looks and she didn’t like it. 

“I suppose I’ll come and say hello...” Tonks replied biting her toast and giving some of the thrims to Hugo. 

 

After breakfast, Tonks and Andromeda walked out of the house and headed down a small trail that led to the forest. Her father’s ability  for shortcut spells always came in handy when you lived in an isolated place like them. Andromeda and Ted could apparate without troubles, but Tonks tagging along, apparating could become quite an ordeal. As a result, they had decided to limit apparition to really faraway destinations and use shortcut spells to closer spots. It was more practical for Tonks. The shortcut point in this case seemed to be an old rowan tree that grew at the very edge of the woods.

 

The trip to the new neighbors home, which normally would have taken about 2 hours of walk through the forest, only took about 5 minutes from the edge of the forest to the house. The first thing that came into Tonks’s mind when she first caught a glimpse of the house was that it was really cosy. It wasn’t as large as her own house, but it was cute nevertheless with its gray stone brick walls, white framed windows and black tiled roofs. It had two chimneys and it looked like it had been taken out of the muggle novel she’d been reading.  The garden wasn’t as extravagant as the one her mother kept, but it had a fair amount of wild flowers and Tonks decided that she liked it.

“Don’t stand there like a fool, Nymphadora...come on.”

Tonks rushed  after her mother and accidentally kicked a bucket that was resting at the edge of the cobblestone path that led to the house’s main entrance. The contents of the bucket spilled all over the soil and the thin made a fuss when it rolled over the cobblestones. The noise was probably enough to alert the house owners of their arrival and Tonks starred apologetically at her mother as she picked the bucket. 

“Buggers….Sorry….”she added at her mother’s glare.

“Dora?” a familiar voice said behind her and Tonks thought she was hallucinating a second. 

She found Lupin -obviously surprised- staring at her with his mouth slightly open. He was wearing casual clothes: a white buttoned shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and dark brown trousers that seemed a little covered in soil. 

“Remus?!” Tonks said wide eyed. Her look traveled from the, equally shocked, boy in front of her to her mother who seemed to be pretty amused.

“You father did said you  _ would  _ like the boy, didn’t he?” Andromeda chuckled “Good morning, Remus. Is Hope in the house?”

“Ah, good morning, Mrs. Tonks. Mum is in the back; working in the orchard. “

“Now, that’s great. Nymphadora...behave yourself properly….”

“Don’t I always do?”

“You don’t want me answering that…”

Andromeda walked past the house and disappeared behind it like if she had done it  thousands of time before and left her daughter in a state of shock and confusion. The girl turned to Lupin with a questioning look and poked his chest with a frown.

“How come you missed to tell me that you had practically moved next door?” 

“What? I did tell you my parents were planning to move and well, it is quite closer to you house, but it isn’t next door. We have a few miles of distance, Dora…” Lupin chuckled.

“Hornwoggle!”  Tonks puted poking his chest resentfully “There’s a Shortcut Charm casted in the old rowan that’s right down the trail!”

Lupins eyes widened in surprise and Tonks realised that the boy hadn’t been feigning ignorance. He really didn’t know that they were, now, neighbors. 

“You really didn’t know?” Tonks said shocked and the boy shook his head. His green eyes were truly surprised.

“I...didn’t. If I had know I would have gone to see you long ago instead of owling you every day” he laughed “My dad seemed to forget that little detail…”

“Ha, it seems our parents are guilty of conspiracy!” Tonks said shaking her head “The outcome however, seems lovely…”

“We really are neighbors?” Lupin smiled.

“Yup...separated by miles of trees, but only a 5 minute walk…”Tonks nodded “How did your parents end up here?”

“Our old neighbors were starting to suspect something was off with me, so dad decided that it was time to move. He told me he  had a found a good place thanks to a friend. It was isolated, quiet and the woods would ease the wolf as well...”

“Our forest… That friend must have been my dad” Tonks realized “ Dad set up several charms around the forest to keep our house concealed. I’m sure he did an extension to cover the rest of the forest.”

“It would make sense; my dad must have put his hand, too and added up some containment spells the full moon…” Lupin replied “ It is much better than a secluded cellar...for my parents and for me. The world seems to be less aggressive when he’s free to roam around the area.”

“That’s great…”Tonks smiled “ it means Mr. Wolfie can run around the forest freely.”

“Yes, and that should help improve his mood. He gets angry when he’s confined in a room.”

“Well, I would , too. Considering he spend his time free in the forbidden forest during the school year…”

“That’s most like why he gets angry…” Lupin chuckled “Want to sit down, I don’t think you want to spend the rest of the visit standing here…”

“Oh, right. Lead the way neighbor...and….” she handed him the empty bucket “Sorry about  _ that.” _

_ “ _ Don’t worry. It was just water. Dad must have forgotten to take it to the back….” he laughed “You know, I thought I had heard your voice...but I blamed it on my subconscious missing you, but when the bucket crashed, I had to see to be sure…”

“I’m not the stealthiest creature, am I?”

“No, but I still think it is lovely.” he said giving her a quick peck “ Come on...I’ll show you around.”

The inside of the house was as lovely as the outside. It was very classy and humble, and Tonks loved it. She was used to her mother’s refined taste of decoration, but she always found it a little too  _ toffy  _ her taste. She prefered it simple. The house had two floors; bedrooms were in the upper level and the rest of rooms were in the first floor. The living room was small, but it had a nice fireplace and a lovely window with a beautiful view; the kitchen was nice and the dinning room was cosy. Tonks decided that she loved the place. 

“Mum was very happy with the house. She’s put up an orchard and she plans to get some chickens…” Lupin chuckled “I think she fell in love with this after visiting your mum a lot…”

“Well, I think she can visit all she wants from now on…” Tonks laughed “Oh dear...do you know how Sirius will react to this?”

“He might explode…” Lupin laughed “He’s going to find an excuse to come here every summer…”

“You’re pretty much the excuse you silly…” Tonks laughed “There I hoped we would get a little more privacy, but I suppose that was wishful thinking…”

“Considering his efforts to match us up...I’m afraid he will try to make us get lost in the woods to see what happens…”

“Pff...I know those woods like my living room…” Tonks laughed “but I could pretend I didn’t…”

“That sounds like a promising plan. Would you show me around then? I’ve been interested of exploring, but since it’s only been several days since we came home, I’ve busy helping out my mum...”

“Gardening. Yes, I noticed...soil in your trousers. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you dirty…” 

“You got me before I could try to make myself presentable…” 

“Hah...well, I’m always messy so...I can’t judge.” Tonks chuckled “But I’ll love to show you the forest. Let’s tell our mums we’re going on a adventure…”

“An adventure?”

“Well, half an adventure. My mum will want me home before tea time…”

Lupin laughed warmly and his arm wrapped around her. It was nice to have her physically by his side. He hadn’t realized how used he had become to her touch, until the past several days, when his only way to contact her was either by owl or through their enchanted charms. The news that Tonks was only “a tree” away from his new home made him love the place even more.

He was used to moving around. Ever since he was bitten when he was four, it had become really difficult for his parents to stay in the same place for too long. The neighbors would eventually start to suspect the youngest Lupin’s odd behavior around the full moons and sooner and later they would piece everything together. 

This new place seemed perfect though. They had no immediate neighbors which meant no nosy of pricking eyes would be snooping around their garden and there was also that large forest were he could transform without the risk of harming any person. When Lupin had asked his father how he had come to find such a perfect place, Lyall had smiled and told him that a friend had showed him the house and had offered him a deal. At the time, he had no idea who that friend was, but now Lupin knew that it could have only been Ted Tonks. 

Up to Tonks prediction, Andromeda clearly warned her to be back before tea time, to what the girl had given Lupin a, I told you so look that made him laugh. Hope smiled at her son and added that they should take something to eat with them since adventures usually required them; so after 15 minutes, the pair was walking down the trail with a bag of biscuits and two bottles of apple and cinnamon juice.  

“Float beyond the world of trees. Out into the whispering breeze, past the rushes, past the weeds, past the marsh's waving reeds.” Tonks chanted cheerfully as she walked half jumping, which made Lupin stay on his toes for any potential sign of disaster, but it didn’t seem like the girl was stumbling any time soon.

“Are you quoting Tolkien?” Lupin laughed.

“ _ I am looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging, and it's very difficult to find anyone. _ ” Tonks said smiling.

Lupin caught her game and grinned as he neatly replied her quote.

“ _ I should think so — in these parts! We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner! _ ”

The two broke into laughs. If Sirius had been there, the boy would have rolled his eyes and sighed in annoyance  without even realizing that Lupin and Tonks were, surreptitiously, flirting at each other using muggle literature quotes. However, Lupin loved to do that, usually it was their own little way to send each other a hidden message that his friends would, most likely, not get at all.

“Alright Mr. Baggins…” Tonks said solemnly “I am afraid you’ll have to pull out that Took from the depths of your soul, because today...we are definitely going on an adventure!”

“Size wise... _ you _ , my dear Dora, should be the hobbit…”

“Oi, are you mocking my height?” Tonks said with an overdramatic offended groan “Remus John Lupin, first of all I can very easily solve that; and second, it’s not my fault you’re a ent in the making…”

“Well, ents get along with hobbits…”

“I liked it better when you were all cute and didn’t tease me…” Tonks laughed.

“Just because I like your flustered face, now...be careful. There are lots of potential hazards around here…”

“Ah, don’t worry. I’ve fallen so many times around here that one more would make no difference.”Tonks smiled “I used to sneak out under my mum’s nose and roam the forest for hours when I was younger. I think my dad found it hilarious…”

“Having your own adventures?”

“That I did. I even had my own epic battles…”

“Against dragons?”

“Well, I did fight a goose once. Those are descendants of reptiles so it can be counted as a dragon, right?”

“Why on earth did you fight a goose for?”

“I was just curious to see what it was guarding.” Tonks shrugged “My grandmother had told me that silly fairytale about a goose that laid eggs of gold, and innocent as I was, I thought that bloody bird was guarding that. Turns out it was guarding eggs, but they weren’t gold and mother geese are really scary…”

“I can imagine they are. Wasn’t it a little dangerous for a young girl like you to be running around a forest?”

“I reckon it was, but Dad had the whole place protected and he said I was pretty mature for my age. Of course, he forgot to put cushioning spells, so I wasn’t so safe from coming home with my knees scraped…”

“You were a real handful…”

“Nah, I was a lovely curious kid…”

“Was?”

“Alright, I  _ am.  _ ”

Tonks had led him to a a small river; the waters were crystal clear and it almost seemed like the it glimmered under the dancing sun rays that fell on its surface when the winds shook the tree tops. The air was fresh and the feeling of the surrounding nature was quiet and relaxing.

“I think Wolfie will love this place…” Tonks said sitting on a rock and picking a small flower from the ground and letting the Niffler run around for a while“It’ll be good for his soul…”

“For his soul…?” Lupin answered sitting next to her and looking up. The leafy branches made a thick veil, but he could see small bits of the blue summer sky through the gaps.

“You know what I mean…” Tonks laughed  “ I used to come here with dad and stare a the colourful fish that swam in there. He would tell me stories about fairies that turned themselves into fish things like that. He’s awfully good at making stories. Mum keeps saying he should start writing his own novels instead of researching all those folktales and stuff…”

“This forest is like your home, huh?”

“It might sound crazy…” Tonks said softly “but sometimes it feels like home. I guess I am, like Sirius would put it, a country girl…”

“I like the countryside better, too…” Lupin said interwinning his fingers with hers “Sirius grew up in the city, so it’s not weird he prefers it, but I know he loves coming here…”

“Yes...he does…” Tonks said leaning her head against his shoulder “We should come camping with everyone…”

“Camping?”

“Yes… camping. Muggle style, not wizard style…”

“Muggle style?”

“Yes, no magical tents, just sleeping bags on a tiny tent; sitting around a bonfire roasting marshmallows and telling stories…”

“I think that’s an idea I could sell Sirius. I'm sure he's never done muggle camping” 

“it'll be fun! Uh, Hugo what are you doing?” 

The niffler had made its way to the riverside and was miserably trying to reach something that was under the water. The creature was so small, that Lupin thought that if it fell into the water it might meet a tragic end since he wasn’t sure if nifflers were particularly good swimmers. To prevent this sad future, the boy raised from his spot next to Tonks and picked the small creature.

“Let’s see what did you find, little one.” 

Lupin looked into the water; the current wasn’t strong since it was summer, so it wasn’t hard to see what rested in the bottom: tons of rocks, dead leaves and branches and one or two furtive colourful fish like the one Tonks had mentioned. A small glim caught his attention and using the hand that wasn’t holding the struggling niffler, he pulled the item out of the water.

It looked like like a marble of the size of grape. Its base color was a dark metallic blue and it had and iridescent play of colors that changed as he moved the thing in his hand. It was very pretty and he wasn’t surprised that the niffler had liked it - Hugo was currently trying to snatch it from him.

“Oh, that’s a labradorite!” Tonks said resting her chin on his shoulder  and her arms around his middle, a gesture that drew a smile in his lips “I saw it in the book when I was trying to figure out what our charms were. I remember thinking that the glim of it was really pretty…” 

“It is… I’m not surprised that Hugo would fancy it; but why is it in the river?”

“I don’t know. Someone must have accidently dropped it or something…” Tonks smiled “It’s a good stone for thinkers like you. You should keep it…”

“ And risk being hated by Hugo?”

“He’ll survive...I’ll just bribe him with something else…”Tonks chuckled then she leaned in to kiss his cheek “Keep it. It has healing powers, especially for those who struggle with...a dark part of themselves they don’t quite like.”

Tonks let go of him and picked Hugo from his hand and gave the niffler a shiny piece of metal. Hugo made a cheerful screech and took the coin and began fidgeting with it and making Tonks laugh amused at how something so simple could bring the small creature such joy.

“See? All forgotten.” Tonks smiled at him.

Lupin found his hand reaching for hers while the other one was still clenching the stone. It probably  looked cheesy: couple of teens walking around the forest holding hands. Lupin would never hear the end of it if his friends saw him strolling through the woods holding hands with a girl; even less, if that girl happened to be  the baby cousin of one of his best mates; but Lupin realised, it would be a teasing that he didn’t mind enduring. 

“Oh...There’s a place I want to show you!” Tonks said cheerfully pulling his hand “It’s my favorite place in this forest!”

“Should I be concerned by the fact that you know this forest so well?” Lupin chuckled as he walked behind the girl. 

“I told you, I was a very curious child and since there weren’t other kids to play around, I tended to lose myself inside my own adventures. Imagination and creativity are the best key to fight loneliness and boredom…”

Lupin could understand her point, he, too, had a lonely childhood after all, and he found himself playing alone when he younger. If he had been in Tonks’s place, he, too, would have spend hours exploring that beautiful forest.

“Your parents didn’t worry when you ran around the forest on your own?”

“At the beginning, yes...but since I kept sneaking out and there was nothing they could do to stop me, they simply placed a tracking charm on me and dad made sure the forest was secured. Dad is a pro in defense spells, you know…”

“Impressive…” Lupin smiled. He already suspected that Ted Tonks had to be a prodigy in spell casting if he had managed to create such a large protective ward “But why did your father put a ward on such a big area? Wouldn’t have been a lot easier to just… secure your home?

Tonks didn’t answer. The girl stopped and pointed ahead. She had led him into a clearing. It was a large circular area covered with wildflowers and grass and only one tree growing in the middle. Lupin was amazed by the tree, it was filled with tiny pink flowers and it made the whole place look mystical, almost like if it had been taken from some fantastic novel.

“Tadaaa…” Tonks giggled “ It’s a lilac tree. Mum discovered it some time ago when she was picking stuff for a potion. Most of mum’s potions are made from the herbs in her garden, but sometimes she comes to the forest for ingredients that she can’t grow herself and that she needs fresh.”

That was the explanation to everything, Lupin thought. Ted Tonks was an admirable man that took the safety of his family to heart. The barriers around the forest and the house were definitely a demanding thing and to some people, they would sound like a ridiculous waste of energy, but if Lupin had been in Ted’s spot, knowing that a crazy dark witch was decided harm his wife and daughter, he would have done the exact same thing. 

“Your dad is an incredible person…”

Tonks smiled. She hugged his arm and leaned her head against his side. 

“Yes, he is.”

 


	34. Glimpses of future

 

"Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby." 

—  **Langston Hughes**

 

Lupin and Tonks enjoyed a few weeks together without the burden of having to keep their interactions as secretive as possible. The teens spent almost every day together. Some days it was Tonks who would visit the Lupins and helped  in the orchard; surprisingly, due to her years being Andromeda’s helper and her extra hours with Professor Sprout, Tonks proved that she was better than Lupin in yet another subject: gardening. It didn’t make the sessions less fun, though,  and they would often bring a wide grin to Hope’s lips or, if she was around, Andromeda’s. Some other days it was Lupin who visited the Tonks. He would sometimes help out Ted filing and sorting his papers and books-something that Tonks absolutely sucked at. He enjoyed these tasks, since Ted was always open to tell him some random story or trivia detail about whatever he was working at and the subjects were always very interesting.

The first full moon in his new home arrived  and between the pain, exhaustion and uncertainty, Lupin found himself anxious; the morning of full moon, Tonks had appeared in the Lupin’s door early  with a bag filled with potions and other things that she knew would made him feel a little better. Even without the potions, the girl with her wide smile was enough to make him feel considerably better; but he noticed that she, too,  looked a little pale, but compared to other times, she didn’t seem as sick. Perhaps the change of scenary had helped her too. 

“You brewed me...all these?” Lupin asked as he watched the girl set the vials on his night table. 

Tonks smiled. She snatched one the vials and handed it to him. 

“Of course I did. I have been doing it every month, so why would I stop just because it’s summer?” 

“Doesn’t it take a lot of work? These potions must be really complex...”

“Just a little…” she shrugged fixing his pillow “but mum was satisfied when she came into my room and saw me working on potions. She even told me I could grab a space in her workshop. I think she’s hoping that I will reconsider my career options and turn into a apothecary as her….”

“She’s proud…” Lupin said swallowing the vial’s content and coughing “With a daughter as talented as you, why shouldn’t she?”

Tonks rubbed his back gently. He was looking terrible, the bags under his eyes were swollen and black, his long limbs seemed fragile and tired, and his pretty green eyes were dull and lifeless. Tonks hated to see him like that, and according to what Damocles had told her, the Wolfsbane potion would reduce those symptoms after a prolonged treatment; unfortunately, Tonk’s wolfsbane wasn’t qualified to be used as treatment yet; but one of her virtues - and faults - was being extremely stubborn and she wouldn’t rest until she was qualified to prepare an effective version.  

“Dora?”

She’d been lost in her thoughts and she hadn’t noticed when Lupin had called her several times.

“Ah, sorry. What was that again?”

“I asked you if you would  be...outside tonight.”

“You know I love sneaking out on full moons…” Tonks giggled “Will Mr. Wolfie want to see me?”

“He’d be delighted…”Lupin replied taking her hand and kissing it “he is very attached to you. It’s...a little unnerving…” 

“Why? I think it is cute…” Tonks laughed “So… between you and Wolfie. Who likes me more?”

“You’ll create an argument now...me vs Wolfie…” Lupin chuckled shaking his head “We both like you equally”

“Really?” Tonks replied brushing a loose lock of light brown hair and tucking it behind his ear.  

“Well, maybe...I like you a little more…”

“Just a litte?”

“A lot, lot more…” 

Tonks laughed and Lupin laid his head on her lap. Maybe it was a psychological thing, but Lupin felt that whenever he had Tonks close around the full moon, the pain seemed to become much more tolerable. The girl brushed his hair gently and tried everything to stay still.

“You should take a nap…” she whispered “get as much rest as you can…”

“I’m not sure if I can. I’m a little restless and anxious…” he replied with his eyes closed. 

“Want me to sing you a lull?” she chuckled.

“That sounds promising…” 

“I’m not a singer, but I will do my best” Tonks chuckled before she started singing softly, almos in an inaudible voice.

_ Peis dinogat e vreith vreith. _ _   
_ _ o grwyn balaot ban wreith. _ _   
_ _ chwit chwit chwidogeith. _ _   
_ __ gochanwn gochenyn wythgeith.

Tonks had never sang for him. This was the first time and despite her insistence on saying that she hadn’t inherited his father’s musical faculties, Lupin thought that her voice was magical. The song was in a language that he didn’t understand, but that he heard before from his own mother’s lips: welsh. Tonks had probably learned the song from her paternal family and he made a mental note to ask her. His thoughts began to drift away until he was long asleep.

 

_ *** _

The wolf  ran through the woods under the bright moon. His senses were overwhelmed by all the new scents that surrounded him and his instinct was telling him to explore this new and foreign territory. 

His nose caught the scent of something familiar and he followed until he reached a large clearing with a blooming lilac tree. The wolf circled the tree a few times  before he finally laid down on its feet. His ears turned as they caught on the soft sounds of the night: a distant animal, the wind blowing through the trees and footsteps; familiar footsteps.

The wolf raised his head and his amber eyes caught at the figure that had just come out from the trail holding a small lamp. Tonks was wearing green robes, and the large hood covered her rose pink hair, but some of the locks fell over her shoulder freely. 

“Ah...I’m glad I found you…” Tonks smiled when she saw the grey wolf curled between the tree’s roots “I was afraid I’d have to go deeper. I’ve already tripped four times…”

The wolf’s ears perked up and his eyes locked on the new arrival with the usual caution of a wild animal despite already knowing who she was. Tonks stepped close enough for the animal to see her, but far enough to be safe, just in case he was in a foul mood. The wolf sniffed the air and caught the familiar scent of blood,  _ her blood.  _ Tonks had stumbled a few times on her way down, and she had gotten several scratches in her arms and her leggings were torn in several places; her right hand was raised, holding an lamp of magical permanent fire and messenger bag rested on her shoulder.

“ Wotcher, Wolfie. Guess what, I got you something.” Tonks said. She dug into the bag and pulled out a dead chicken and threw it at his feet. 

She had visited the town earlier that day- after seeing Lupin- with her mother and she managed to sneak away from her mum’s constant vigilance, to buy some him something to eat. Lupin had told her how much hated killing things when he was a wolf, but he couldn’t control the animal’s need to eat. During full moons, Lupin would usually lose his appetite to the point that he could barely bear to eat some bland broth, as a result, once he transformed, the wolf would be starving and ready to hunt. Knowing Lupin’s struggle about hunting, she had come with the idea of providing him food that he didn’t have to kill.

“I read somewhere that you’re not supposed to eat cooked stuff…” Tonks said as she watched the wolf take the chicken and began devouring it “Well...I suppose you don’t mind eating it raw, but forgive me if I think it is gross…”

The wolf’s answer was a soft growl and Tonks threw another chicken to him. The wolf caught it in the air and proceeded to eat it up ravenously as she sat down in the ground watching. Werewolf or not, to her he didn’t look that different from an oversized wolf. 

“You know…” she said casually “Now that I look at you...you could pass for a dire wolf. It was like a prehistoric wolf, very big and strong...unfortunately for him, he went extinct; but I think they would have been as big as you…”

The wolf kept chewing the chicken without paying much attention to her words and Tonks chuckled.

“Well, I suppose the chicken is more interesting than my random trivia. Are you lonely tonight? Without your animal friends, I mean? You shouldn’t worry though, Sirius and the gang should be coming in a couple weeks and you four can go explore the whole forest together in the next full moon. Maybe you will find something interesting. Is it bad if I say that I envy Sirius and the others?”

The wolf finished his meal and stared at her licking his snout. The animal approached Tonks in a docile posture and sat in front of her, making her smile. 

“Always a gentleman, even as a wolf…” she mumbled. 

She had wanted to touch him, but Lupin was quite wary of it, so she resisted the urge to outstretch her hand and scratch the wolf’s ears. Maybe someday, when she made a perfected wolfsbane potion for Lupin, the boy would finally allow her to be closer without worrying so much; but that would take time. Snape and she had made a lot of progress the past year, but they were still a little far to perfect it; however, Damocles had seemed very satisfied with the pair and was looking forward to the day that he’d be able to certify both of them as the first Wolfsbane brewers beside Damocles himself. It was an honor that Slughorn could not wait to brag about: his two best pupils.

“The moon is beautiful tonight…” she said more to herself than to the wolf. 

She stared at it absently for a while, almost as if the moon had put a spell on her, and a wave of images filled her mind.It was like she was watching a movie; she saw someone that she  _ knew  _ was herself sitting with her legs crossed over the grass and pulling her robes protect herself from the cold winds. She looked older, with her favorite pink hair falling loosely and dark purple robes; something moved behind her, and Tonks saw her older self smile as a man dropped by her side. He, too, was older; no exactly old, despite the premature gray hair that threatened to replace his light brown mane; he wore old and mended up robes that had definitely seen better days and his face was covered in scars. She didn’t need to hear them talk to recognize a much older version of Lupin. She couldn’t hear what they talked about, but whatever it was, it seemed grave. The older Lupin grabbed her hand and planted a kiss on her forehead before standing up and walking away. Her older self didn’t turn back, she raised her sad and concerned look to stare at the sky and Tonks saw exactly what she was seeing. At the distance, the full moon was starting to raise…

 

_ I wish I could take the pain in his place…ease him from the burden he  doesn’t deserve.  _

 

The voice had whispered in an echo inside her head. It was her own voice: sad and concerned; and despite the fact that she could relate to that wish, she knew it wasn’t something she’d ever said or thought before. It was complicated to explain, but sometimes her thoughts just felt as if they weren’t completely her own. A sudden nudge on her hand made her wake up from her trance. Tonks had to blink a couple of times to remember where she was. The wolf was staring at her, he’d been the one to nudge her, most likely trying to catch her attention. What had she just seen? Was it a vision of the future or just something made out by her mind?

“I’m alright…” she smiled at him and ignoring her original abstention to pet the wolf, she began to scratch his ears “I just zoned out for bit. I am a little tired. ”

The wolf looked at her and for a second she thought she’d seen Lupin’s concerned look reflected in the amber eyes. She petted the wolf with a soft smile trying to let him know she was fine.

“It’s alright. I’m not feeling ill or anything. It’s just tiredness.”

The wolf stared at her with almost the same expression of skepticism that Lupin would have given her if he he’d been there. 

“I’ll just sit here with you  for a while and then I’ll go home to sleep, okay? No need to look at me so sternly.” she chuckled “the night is so pretty so let me stay a little longer…”   
If it the wolf had had his human mind more in control, he would have pushed her all the way back to her house, but he didn’t; and the wolf liked her company. He sat by her side as the girl leaned against a tree and watched the sky sparkled in stars and the brilliant full moon.  Her companion was a quiet one, but she didn’t mind doing the talking.

 

The next morning, Lupin dragged himself out of the forest. He was in pain, tired and slightly nauseous, but, in general, he considered that he was doing great. The injuries weren’t too bad and the pain was tolerable.

He wanted to sneak  into his bedroom before his mother saw he had arrived. Being a muggle, there was little she could do to help him with the injuries and his dad wasn’t home for a couple days; so he didn’t want to see Hope’s sad face when she saw his mangled body. However, when he entered the house, there was someone already waiting for him. Andromeda Tonks smiled at him as he stood at the entrance shocked. The woman was holding a cup of tea and judging by the scene, his mother and she had been having a pleasant cup of tea before he had interrupted.

“Good morning, Remus…” she said gently. 

Lupin articulated a few soundless words before he could finally answer the greeting. Why was Andromeda Tonks sitting so casually in his living room at 6 am? 

“G-good morning, Mrs. Tonks…”

The boy soon caught in his mother's concerned look traveling from his several wounds. Compared to other times, the amount and severity of them were significantly less. When the wolf was locked, he'd have no other choice but release his frustration on his own, but since he could roam freely in the forest and release his energy chasing animals, his current injuries were due to the normal transformation strains and some scratches from his night doings. However, Hope's maternal sight was obviously horrified even if it wasn't serious. 

“Oh, Remus…” Hope said sadly when she saw the new injuries on her son. The boy tried to smile at her reassuringly “Look at you…”

“I’m alright mum, really. It was good...not as bad as other times…”

“But, honey…”

“It’s alright, Hope. That’s why I came for, today, no?” Andromeda said putting a hand on Hope’s shoulder “Sit down, Remus. Let’s patch you up…”

He was still a little too shocked to react so he simply obeyed Andromeda's command and sat down stiffly in the empty armchair. Andromeda opened her bag and began to take out few bottles and other implements that he recognized from his afternoon sessions with Madam Pomfrey.

“I am afraid that I’ll need you to take off the shirt, Remus. I see a large gash in your shoulder that requires a clean up before I can mend it…”

Andromeda’s abilities as a healer were comparable to Madam Pomfrey’s. The woman worked fast and neatly. After several minutes, Lupin found himself healed from most of his injuries and holding a warm cup of some sort of herbal tisane that smelled wonderfully.

“There you go. Drink that up. It will help with the after moon effects.” Andromeda smiled.

“Thank you, Mrs. Tonks...you didn’t have to…”

“Yes, thank you very much, Andromeda…” Hope said rubbing her son’s back.

“No need to thank me. I was happy to be of help. Nymphadora told me that Poppy would usually help you the morning after the moon. I assumed that you wouldn’t have that privilege while being on summer vacations and decided to come and see if I could be of help. You’ve taken care of my daughter many times, this is the least I can do to repay you…”

Mentioning Tonks name made Lupin realize that it was unlikely that the girl would have joined her mother for this visit. The initial shock had prevented him from thinking of that little detail and now he was slightly concerned. 

“Is...Dora alright?” he said softly.

He had the vague memory of her saying that she was feeling a little tired the previous night, and something, call it instinct, told him that the girl wouldn’t have missed the visit unless she had been physically unable to come. 

If Andromeda found that question strange since he hadn’t asked  _ where _ Tonks was, the woman didn’t show it. She picked the vials and began accommodating them inside a case. 

“She woke up a little indisposed this morning. I had her stay in bed.”

“Indisposed?” Hope asked concerned “Oh dear, I hope it isn’t grave…”

“She felt a little sick; threw up a couple times this morning and wasn’t able to get out of bed without stumbling.”Andromeda replied with a sigh “It’s a recurrent thing these days, apparently. I wish there was something I could do, but unfortunately there isn’t much I can try when I don’t know the cause...”

He had hoped that she would be feeling well that full moon. She had looked fine the day before so her sudden sickness had began after he’d left her on the edge of the forest. Hope put her hand on her son’s shoulder, knowing that his affection for the girl was significant, and that she was probably as concerned as her parents regarding her poor health. 

“You’ve mentioned before that she gets sick around this time recently, but thought she was feeling okay. I mean, she looked okay when she came by yesterday. “Hope said worried.

“It was an overnight thing. It’s not the first time that she wakes up feeling ill; but considering past events, she’s alright. A little dizzy and tired, that’s all...”

“I should check on her…” Lupin said getting up from the couch and ignoring the painful stretch that his muscles gave at the sudden movement.

“ No. You won’t be going anywhere until you’ve slept and eaten something, young man.” Andromeda said sternly ”Nymphadora won’t be going anywhere either, so you can  come and see her after you’ve rested.”

“But…”

“Listen, son. I know you’re worried, but look at it like this. If she sees you tired as you are, she will worry, too, and it will prevent her from recovering. It’s better if you rest up and go see her looking handsome and well…”

Lupin had to admit that Hope’s reasoning made sense and he sighed in defeat. After thanking Andromeda one last time, he turned on his heels and headed to his room. He picked the black stone from his night table and whispered in a soft whisper.

“Dora?”

A couple of minutes passed before the girl answered. Her  voice was soft and sleepy.

“Wotcher. How are you?”

“I should be asking you that…” he replied leaning against the bed header “Your mum said you were sick…”

“I’m alright. I got a little dizzy this morning and mum made a fuss. I’m feeling better now. What about you?”

“I’m alright. Your mum treated my wounds.”

“That’s great...I’m glad you’re okay.” Tonks’s voice still sounded sleepy, but there was a hin to cheer in it “ You must be tired. You should sleep.”

“You sound tired too…”

“I’m drowsy. Whatever mum gave me, makes me feel funny…”

“I see...then I’ll let you sleep. I’ll go see you tomorrow, alright?”

“Okay, rest well, Remus.”

“Rest well, Dora.”

  
  


Lupin curled into his bed and, hoping that by the time he woke up Tonks would be back to health, the boy fell into a deep, yet anxious slumber.

 

***

Tonks was lying on her bed looking boredly at the ceiling. She was feeling a lot better, but her mum had insisted on her staying in bed until she considered that Tonks was in condition to be running around again. In Tonks opinion, she was fine, but convincing her mother was another story.

Lupin came to see as he had promised. He was looking considerably well despite the transformation from the prior days. He still looked a little exhausted, but his face had good color and seemed cheerful .

“You're looking good!” she smiled when the the boy sat down at the foot of the bed. 

“I'm feeling good. How about you?” he asked and Tonks could see the concern in his green eyes. 

The girl crawled out  from under her covers and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. 

“I'm alright. Mum is being dramatic. I just had an upset stomach and she decided to to put me on bed arrest.”

“She's worried.”he replied grabbing the hand that laid close to his chest.

“I know, I know…” Tonks chuckled “like I know you have worried as well. Sorry about that, Remus… “

“Don't be. Like you always like to point, I am a big fusshead… “he smiled” but, for real now. How are you feeling?”

“I'll be a lot better if you help me escape this prison…”

“And fall into your mother's bad graces? I'll rather not.”

“It's summer. I'll get sick if I stay indoors any longer! “

Lupin smiled. That was true; Tonks hadn't been lying at at time when she had described him summers in her home place. Lupin found that from all the places he'd lived since he was four, this was the one he liked the most and it had nothing to do with the fact that Tonks was technically his neighbor. 

“Let me see what I can do”

Convincing Andromeda to let him take Tonks out out wasn't easy, but thanks to Ted's support the woman had finally allowed Lupin to take Tonks out.

“Oh, let them have some fun, Dromeda. What's the point of dating if you don't have fun?” Ted chuckled” In fact, I'm going to Scarborough to pick up some books for the next podcast tomorrow . I heard there is a fair going over there. I could bring Remus and Dora along. “

“OH, well….” Andromeda sighed” I suppose you're right, but…”

“Dromeda,dear.I'll be around and even if I wasn't around, you should know Remus here fusses over Dora almost as much as you do. “Ted chuckled patting the named boy's back “don't worry. Dora might be even better cared with him that with me.”

“well, you did lose her once in the market when she was five…”

Ted smiled apologetically and Lupin saw Tonks feign offense. 

“Dad… how could you lose me, your beautiful and adorable daughter? “

“To be fair, my adorable daughter. It's hard to keep tabs of a 5 year old girl that changes her hair color every 15 minutes.”

“She did?” Lupin asked amused. 

“Yes, it was easy to mistake her for another child if you weren't looking. Let me tell you, there's nothing worse than having a metamorphmagus for child. “ Ted laughed and Andromeda nodded behind him. 

“Hey!” 

“Dora, the day you have your own family and you happen to have a child with your talent and temper, you will understand.” 

“Was she a difficult baby?” 

“Dora? Oh no, she was a cute baby, maybe a little too curious for her own good sometimes.”

“I have some pictures here” Andromeda said waving her wand and a bunch of photo albums came up floating to where they were sitting. 

“Mum!” 

“Hush, Nymphadora. If Remus wants to know I'll be glad to to show him. Look, this is a few days after she was born. ”

Lupin smiled while Tonks covered her face in annoyance and embarrassment. The picture showed an slightly younger version of Andromeda holding a tiny baby whose hair kept switching from brown to blonde and then to ginger. 

“Dora's hair started to change an hour after she was born” Ted explained “it was a big surprise to everyone” 

“I bet it was.” lupin chuckled “she was so tiny. Well she still is small.”

“Hey! Just because you happen to be giant” she complained punching his arm. 

Lupin's hand slid across her back and pulled her against his side affectiously. He was still a little shy about showing affection in front of his or her parents, but since they knew about their relationship and as long as they were modest, neither parents minded. 

“it's better this way; you're easier to hug…”

“That's true, Dora. The smaller the better to hug” Ted laughed. 

“Don't encourage him, dad!” 

Lupin laughed and pressed a kiss on her temple making Ted and Andromeda smile at each other.

“Ah… Remember this one, Dromeda? “

The picture showed a toddler Tonks wearing a green dress and standing trembly in front of a window. 

“Ah yes, that was the day Nymphadora learned to stand up.” 

“How old was she?” 

“About 5 or 6 months” Ted answered watching the little Tonks jump in the picture “she was a very quick learner.” 

“I still am, dad.” Tonks pouted. 

“And she didn't mind wearing pretty dresses.” 

“Mum… “

“You were a cute baby, too,Remus, hope showed me the pictures. “

“My mum did?” 

“when you grow up and get a family, Remus you will know with how much pride mothers love to show each other's baby photos…”Ted laughed. 

“You do the same, so there's really not place for you to judge.” Andromeda said raising an eyebrow at her husband-

“Alright, I stand corrected, that should be  a parents' thing, then.” 

Lupin chuckled. He had to admit that if he had children he would probably brag them to everyone, too, but he was a werewolf. Having a girlfriend was already a miracle, and thinking about a family was already too codicious from himself. 

“Dad you're going to scare off poor Remus!”

“Scaring me?” 

“Yes, with the whole future family speech” Tonks laughed “it’s a little to early to be insinuating things dad!” 

“I'm not insinuating anything, Dora"Ted laughed “if you are over thinking things isn't my fault.”

“Dad” Tonks said rolling her eyes “alright I'm taking Remus out of here before this conversation evolves into more personal stuff… “

“Aw, Nymphadora but I wanted to show Remus your toddler pictures.” 

“Mum. I doubt he wants to see me in my nappies, mind you.” 

“Actually… I'm a little curious to see you.”

“Remus… No” 

“It can't be that bad, Dora.” Lupin smiled looking at the pictures that Andromeda handled him. 

Lupin wasn't an expert about babies. He was an only child and had no baby cousins, so he had never actually seen a baby before, but to his little expertise he had to agree to Ted's claims that she'd been adorable. 

She had big bright eyes  that shone like black marbles and even at a toddler age she was full smiles and colours. 

“You were a cute baby!” 

“I told you.” Ted smiled “just look at that smile. The day she was born was the happiest one we had, wasn't it Dromeda?” 

“Yes, after the hell I went through, it was the happiest time in my life.” 

“It wasn't that bad… “

“Excuse me. You didn't spend 16 hours in labour, with contractions and hellish pain, mister.” 

“Ugh too much info mum.” 

“It is a natural process of female reproductive physiology, Nymphadora. You should know that.

“Mum I'm thirteen. That part of female physiology is none of my concern right now. “  Tonks laughed and Andromeda rolled her eyes.

“Well I guess that's fine; you're still too young to think about it “ Ted said patting her back “enjoy your time together properly. Dating is a nice part of the experience.” 

“We know, dad. Remus and I will enjoy the dating phase as long as possible. Which is why we are keeping it secret. “

“I thought it was a bet…” Lupin chuckled. 

“Well, that too, but do you imagine what Sirius would do if he knew?” 

Lupin stood quietly for a moment; his hand was still resting on a page of the album that was filled with moving pictures of a very adorable 3 years old Tonks. Sirius would probably make a big fuss over him having a girlfriend, but the fuss would be even bigger if that girlfriend turned out be his favorite baby cousin.  He was the number one supporter of that match along the rest of the Marauders and Lily so the level of teasing they’d get would be endless.

“You're right, he'd never leave us alone…” Lupin admitted “and that would be horrifying.”

“Nothing like pestering cousins to ruin a good date…” Tonks said  looking at the picture from over his shoulder “oh...I remember that trip. We went to a beach Wales. I think it was the very first time I saw the sea.”

“You look happy…” Lupin smiled “You have always had a lovely smile…”

“She got that from me”Ted laughed “The rest is purely her mum’s though. Dora inherited the full charms of the Black ladies…

“NO” both Tonks and Andromeda replied at the same time and the  two males laughed.

Remus stared at the pictures that waved and smiled at him from between the pages of the album and broad smile curled in his lips. Maybe it was a little too early, or maybe it was simple too wishful for him, but if he could ever have a family, he hoped that it could be just like this. 

 


End file.
